Bella's choice
by Lorelei Candice Black
Summary: From a young age Bella knew that somewhere, a vampire named Kol was her true love, her soul mate and that he would find her some day. Edward just proposed to her and she wonders if she should wait for true love and loose Edward OR give up on waiting and say YES to Edward. What will happen? Will Kol find her in time? Read and Review please! Rating will go up later.
1. Chapter 1

_**Bella's Choice**_

_Bella/Kol or Bella/Edward_

_Twilight/ The Vampire Diaries_

_Some of you asked me for a Bella/Kol story and I said I would think about it but I had a hard time finding inspiration. Until last night that is. It came to me... I don't know if you will like this, I don't know if this is going to be a long story or a short one, but here it is._

_I hope you will all enjoy it and let me know in a review if you think it should go on or be over soon._

_Have a good read!_

_Lorelei Candice Black_

* * *

Bella was in her bedroom, facing was she figured would be the biggest dilemma of her entire life, no matter how long she was going to get to live. All she had to do was say either _Yes_ or _No_ to Edward and yet she couldn't make that decision.

Charlie was fishing. She envied him. He didn't have a life changing decision to make, all he had to do is try and catch a fish that would be bigger than Billy's to win their little friendly competition and everything would be fine for him.

She had tried keeping busy to help her think. She cleaned the floor, did the laundry, dusted everything, cooked... it didn't work... She couldn't even concentrate on homework...

All she could think about was the fact that someone she loved wanted to marry her but that she knew for sure that he wasn't her soul mate...

Should she just give up and marry him, knowing that he wanted her to remain human and weak? Should she wait for the perfect love that could never come but that would make her happy, let her become a vampire and let her become the strong woman she was meant to be should he come in her life? Should she just go for Jacob whom she only loved as a brother but that loved her deeply and would give her a normal human life? What kind of life did she want?

If she married Edward and her true love arrived later, could she leave Edward?

It couldn't be right to marry Edward knowing she could end up leaving him some day. Besides, would she be able to leave him? Was there some sort of divorce for Vampires that didn't include one of them ending up in a pile of ashes?

She loved Edward of course but he was too protective of her, he was still living in 1917 in his head and she would have a hard time bringing him up to recent ways of living... She also knew that he would be devastated if she leaved him now... He would be even worst if she was to leave him after being married to him for some time... She could already see him going to the Voltury and asking to be killed...provoking them if necessary as he had tried to do before.

Bella also wondered if Alice was truly blind when it came to her decision making. She had told her that she couldn't see a thing and Bella figured that it wasn't because of Jacob but because of Kol and his being an Original vampire... Still, it would be nice to have someone she trusted telling her what to do...

If she chose to leave Edward, would she be able to stay friend with the Cullen's or would they leave her completely?

She didn't want to loose, Esmee, Carlisle, Alice or Emmett...even Jasper she had grown to care for... But if she broke Edward's heart, she knew they would all be mad at her and leave... Should she sacrifice a possible perfectly happy future for the family she had grown to love?

Bella could almost hear Rosalie telling her that no, she couldn't. If she did, she knew that one day she'd end up as bitter as the pretty Rosalie.

It'w not like she wouldn't be happy to an extend with Edward...but she feared that her life with Edward would compare to the life of a caged bird. She would be safe but she wouldn't be free, she would be human, growing old to see her vampire family stay the same while she'd decay... This kind of life could only make her happy for a limited amount of time, she felt that if she chose Edward she'd end up depressed...

Of course he told her that he'd consider changing her should she say yes but could she really trust him for this? He spent the better part of his time hiding things from her... If it hadn't been for Jacob, she wouldn't have known that Victoria was looking for her...trying to kill her...

Bella looked at the clock to see that it was almost time for her father to come home and she wasn't even close to finding a solution to her problem. She sighted. She remembered when it really all started.

It wasn't when she met Edward or even when he proposed.

No, it started much sooner than that...

* * *

_**-12 years ago-in Phoenix-**_

Bella was just a little over 6 and her mother had taken her to the big market.

As usual, Renee went from one stand to another without checking if her daughter was with her, knowing that the little girl would follow her, even from afar and would find her eventually.

While Renee was flirting with the tomato seller Bella looked all around her and saw, right across the street, a teenage boy with weird funny hair running by an old woman and pushing her aside harshly. The shock was so hard that the poor woman dropped her grocery bag on the floor.

When Bella saw that everybody ignored the old woman, she glanced at her mother. Since Renee was still talking, she rushed to the other side of the street to help the woman who was now on her knees, trying to pick up all of her groceries.

"Thank you young lady... It's not often someone so young helps me without being asked first." The old woman told Bella once they had picked everything back up.

"Oh...You're welcome..." Bella replied politely, blushing.

"I'm going to give you something special to thank you. What's your name child?"

"Isabella Swan but I like better being called Bella. You don't have to give me anything..." She replied, still blushing.

The old woman took her hands in hers and said:

"I know, that's why I'm doing it. You're going to have a hard time believing me Young Bella but you'll have the proof I'm telling the truth later on in your life. The supernatural world exists. Witches, werewolves, shapeshifters, vampires of different races... You're going to get sucked into this world one day and for the first time in your life you'll find that you completely belong somewhere. Your one true love, your soul mate, the one perfect love that was made for you and for which you were made... You will meet him...He will come and find you...Until then, he'll always be with you, in your dreams. You'll know everything about him before meeting him..."

Bella didn't know if she should call for help or believe the woman but she decided to trust her instinct and to believe what the old woman was saying.

"Like my prince charming?" Bella asked.

She was a little girl after all, she had read a lot of fairy tales and if she knew one thing is that the love of the prince charming will always wake up or heal the princess.

"Yes child, your prince charming. You'll meet other loves, but they will never compare to the perfectness of the love your true love, your prince charming if you will. Only the one you'll start dreaming off tonight will be perfect for you and make you truly happy. Do you understand Bella?" The old woman asked and insisted, looking Bella in the eyes.

"Yes, I do." Bella answered.

"I have to go, I can't be late. Have a good life Isabella Swan."

Then, before Bella could add anything, the woman was gone and Bella was alone with the woman's perfume lingering on her hands as only proof that it really happened. She would have liked to think more about it, to sit down and think it over, compare what she's been told to all the fairy tales she had read but she didn't have time, from the corner of her eyes she could see her mother walking and moving up the stands without checking if she was following. Should she tell her mother everything?

Shaking her head, she decided that she needed to keep this to herself and she ran as fast as she could to catch up with her mother, deciding to forget all about it until she had to go to bed. If she truly dreamt of her prince, then she would believe it, if she didn't, then it meant that old woman was crazy.

"You're breathing so loudly Bella honey, is everything okay? You're so red!" Renee asked her daughter after looking down.

"I'm fine mom, I just ran that's all." Bella replied.

"Oh, okay then. Come now, I want to fish." Renee replied, going forward, not asking her daughter why she ran.

.

Bella was about to go to bed and was nervous. She was even more nervous now than when she had to stand in front of the entire class to do her book report. Right now, she didn't know if she really wanted to know if it was true or not.

Of course, like every little girl in the world, she wanted to meet Prince Charming and be a princess but that was in the book world, could it really happen in the real life world?

"You're still up Bella, I know that tomorrow is Sunday and that you can sleep in but it's almost 10:30, you need to get some sleep honey." Renee said as she entered the room and closed the curtains that showed a full moon shining over the town.

"I know. Goodnight mom." Bella replied, resigned.

"Goodnight Bella." Renee said before she kissed her daughter's forehead and left the room, closing the door behind her.

Bella wished she could still see the moon. She always found it reassuring to see it shining over everything, especially when it was full, it was much prettier.

She turned the light off and closed her eyes, knowing that she wouldn't be able to escape sleep for much longer.

.

Bella found herself in a village with wooden houses... The way people were dressed showed her it was a long time ago.

Nobody could see her.

She had appeared next to a house where a man was cutting wood with a much younger man. Instinctively Bella knew it was his son. Suddenly a woman appeared out the door. She had pretty long blond hair but when Bella looked in her eyes she knew the woman wasn't pretty on the inside.

"Mickeal, Finn, lunch is served." She announced.

"Are they all back yet?" The man asked.

Just like she had known the woman wasn't that nice, Bella knew the man wasn't a soft daddy like her own. This one was mean and hard, she could tell.

"Niklaus and Henrik just came back. Elijah and Kol brought a big deer." The woman replied as they all went inside.

Bella didn't want to be left alone outside so she followed them in and saw a lot of people. She was used to a house with just her and her mother and here she saw that beside the parents, there was 5 boys and 1 girl. Her heart immediately went out the the girl, it mustn't be easy to grow up with all those brother.

She shook herself out of her thought and as the family started to eat, she took to observing the boys, looking for the one that would be her prince.

Finn, the oldest, looked too serious. The little boy next to him was not that good looking according to Bella and if it wasn't the most important thing in a prince, she knew they still had to be good looking to the princess. The one named Elijah looked much too serious to Bella and Rebekah was obviously a girl and a prince couldn't be a girl.

There was only two boys left, well, young men really. Niklaus was blond and quite good looking but Bella knew, by the way he was looking at his father, that he was afraid of him. A prince couldn't be afraid, Bella knew that too so even if Niklaus was good looking, he couldn't be her prince.

Since there was only one left, she walked closer to him and when he looked up, she was allowed to see his eyes. She vaguely heard the mother calling him Kol. Bella knew he was the one. Her one perfect love... The one she would meet some day.

Kol.

She watched as they finished their day and went to hide in the caves to escape from the werewolves.

She stayed by Kol's side and even if he didn't see her, she felt closer to him.

When, in the middle of the night she saw Niklaus being woken up by Henrik, she tried to wake Kol up but it didn't work since she wasn't really there. She cried with fear when they left the caves and followed them, yelling for them to go back, even if they didn't hear her. When a werewolf about to turn back into a man caught sight of them, he jumped and Bella cried even harder when she realised that Henrik was dead.

.

Bella woke up crying.

Little Henrik was dead and even if she didn't know him it was sad. She didn't know how but she knew that it had all really happened a long time ago. She wondered how Kol could be her true love when he had lived so long ago but she was confident that the answers would come to her with time. She had to believe that the old woman had been right and that she would know everything about him and eventually, she had to trutst that he would find her, love her and that, just like in books, she would have her happily ever after.

* * *

**This is it for the first part. Start reviewing to tell me if I should go on and make it long or make it short. Bella should end up with Edward or Kol?**

**Don't hesitate to do it and tell me what you'd like to see hapenning here.**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Bella's Choice**_

_2_

_Wow! _

_28 reviews in the first few hours! you people are great! Since I was done writing THE CRUISE I wrote a few other small fictions and I kept writing my RACHEL SALVATORE fanfiction but they didn't get that many reviews! I'm so happy with all you're review!_

_After the first 28 I didn't think I'd get more and yet here you are! Wow! THANK YOU!_

_Also everyone voted for Kol! I was surprised... Not even one small pity vote for Edward! He's gonna cry you know?_

_Well, here is the second chapter... Right now I have material for 6 or 7 chapter... Considering that this idea started as a one shot... This is good right? I'll try to make it longer!_

_Have a good read!_

_Lorelei Candice Black_

* * *

Bella was preparing the fishes her father had brought back and wondered if she should tell him all of this. She knew he would be strong enough to handle the supernatural world but should she tell him anything?

"Something wrong Bells? You're more quiet than usual." Charlie asked her, breaking her out of her thoughts.

She looked up at him and saw that he truly looked concerned. He was worried for her, his father instinct told him that something was wrong...

"Just thinking dad..." She replied, trying her best to wave his worries off.

"Troubles with Edward?" he asked her.

She couldn't help but detect some distant hope in his voice.

"No, not at all. What makes you think that?"

She knew he didn't like Edward but did he have to put everything on him? Well, he was right this time but still...

"Well, he's usually around about this time... Even when you saw him all day." Charlie replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"Oh... Well, I saw him this morning but then his brothers wanted to spend some time with him so I came home." She lied

"Did you go out with Alice or something?"

"No, I stayed home. Cleaned a little, did some homework..." She replied vaguely.

"Okay... You didn't go to the reservation to spend some time with Jacob?" Charlie asked her.

"Dad...It's hard for me... spending time with Jacob... He wants more than friendship dad... I don't like him that way... he's like a brother to me... I hated it when he forced a kiss on me and I don't really want to see him again before he realises that I don't like him this way... He made me feel helpless and it will be some time before I can bring myself to forgive him and before I fell comfortable spending time with him." Bella explained quickly as a blush creeped its way on her face.

"Oh... Look... I'm sorry for not defending you when you broke your hand... I didn't know it would go this far... I still see Jacob like a little kid with a crush on my little girl... I'm trully sorry..." He replied honestly.

"Don't worry dad. It's fine." She replied as she handed him a new beer.

After a few minutes of inner debate, Bella decided to ask him something. Depending on his answer and her nerves, she would tell him or not.

"Ch...Dad, I was wondering... Do you believe in the supernatural?" She asked him.

She watched as he put down his beer, a thinking look on his face.

"I guess so... Maybe... I'm not opposed to it existing...and with what I've seen over the years... I guess I kind of have to believe to an extend... Why are you asking?"

"I... I was just remembering something that happened in Phoenix when I was a little girl..." She replied, waving it off.

She didn't have the nerves to tell him everything.

"What happened?" He asked her seriously and obviously interested.

She could tell that he was happy to speak openly with her and that he truly was interested... She immediately felt guilty about keeping so much from him and decided to be honest.

"I... When I was a little over 6, mom and I went to the market and while mom bought some tomatoes, an old woman got knocked over by a teenager... Her groceries were all over the place and everybody was ignoring her so I went to help her pick everything up."

"That was very nice of you Bella. I knew you were a good kid." Charlie interrupted her proudly.

"Thanks... Anyway, she said that she wanted to thank me and she took my hands in hers and looked me in the eyes... She told me something about supernatural existing and about my one true love being part of the supernatural world... She told me that even if there were other loves in my life, nothing would compare to the one HE would give me. That I would be perfectly happy with him..." Bella said.

"And you think this is Edward?" Charlie asked her half resigned.

"That's the thing... She told me that I would dream about my soul mate every night from that day and I have... Ever since that day, every night I dream of this young man named Kol who's a member of the first family of Original vampires... I saw his entire life... I know you're going to say it might just be my imagination but... Some things I saw... I checked and it fits the history... Things that I couldn't have possibly known otherwise..." Bella told him.

Her father's face was unreadable. She didn't know if he was about to call a psychiatrist or tell her he believed her. Maybe he would call an exorsist too. By the look on his face, there was no way of knowing what he would do.

"I... You're sure this was real?" He asked her in a wavy voice.

"I know it's a lot dad but yes, I do..." She said as she took the chair in front of him and sat down.

"Why haven't you told anyone before?" He asked her, looking back into her eyes.

"I don't know... I didn't want to tell mom because I knew she would have made a big deal out of it and...I didn't think you would believe me... Do you?" She asked him, uncertainty in her eyes.

"I do Bella. You're my daughter and I love you. I also know you. I know that you wouldn't believe it unless you had reasons to. So Bella, if you decided to tell me now there must be a reason..." He said.

"I...I don't know what to do dad... Should I stay with Edward because Kol isn't there yet or wait for true love to come?"

"You're only 18 Bella... You should give this Kol some time..." Charlie advised her, already happier to have another option besides Edward.

"That's the thing... He can't come right now..."

"Why?"

"Their sort of vampire, the ones from his family...They can't be killed because they burnt the one tree that could kill them but the ashes from this tree on a special silver dagger planted into their hearts can put them in some sort of sleep state as long as the dagger stays there... I dreamt that Kol has been daggered a little over 100 years ago... His brother, who's half vampire and half werewolf and can't be killed is keeping him close and it would be impossible to get to it and undagger him... I know it sounds crazy dad but I swear..."

"I believe you honey." Charlie said, interrupting her.

He took her hands in his own to calm her down and said:

"Now, why don't you tell me everything so I know as much as you do and we can discuss this truly?"

After a deep breath of relief, Bella started to explain everything to her father. Everything she had seen in her dreams, everything she had found on the internet or in the news that convinced her that it was all real... She told him the details of every supernatural creatures Kol encountered, their strengths and their weaknesses...

When she arrived to her coming in Forks, she told him that it was then that she saw him being daggered, right before she met Edward and fell in love with him.

"...And now I still dream of Kol but much less often and it's only a mash-up of what I already know...nothing new... At the time I figured dreaming of him being daggered right before I met Edward was a sign that I should give up..." She finished.

It was a lot to take for Charlie but he seemed to be taking it well.

"I see... Now, be honest with me, is Edward supernatural?" Charlie asked her.

Deciding that she couldn't hide anything else from her father, she decided to keep on being honest with him, knowing that should would have to face the consequences of this choice later on with both Edward and Jacob.

"Yes, Edward and his family are Cold ones... Jacob and his friends from the reservation are shape-shifters... They change into horse sized wolves but they don't hurt people, they hunt vampires..." She replied, looking down, ready to be scolded for dating a vampire.

"I always knew there was something fishy about this Edward... I can't believe he sparkles in the sun." Charlie chuckled, making Bella smile and blush as she looked up.

"Now, why did you finally decide to tell me Bells?" He asked her.

"I... Edward proposed... he wants to marry me... I know he would try to make me happy but he was changed in 1917 and I think he's still there in his head sometimes... he wants me to stay human and he doesn't understand why I would ever want to become a vampire... He wants me to grow old by his side and doesn't believe me when I tell him I would hate myself and him after some time... I mean, I would be an 80 year old woman and he would still look 17..." Bella rushed the words out.

"Oh... Well, besides him wanting to marry you, I understand that to be with someone forever you have to live forever..."

"You wouldn't mind me becoming a vampire?" she asked her father, surprised.

"As long as this is your choice honey, I don't mind at all. All a father wants is for his daughter to be happy. I trust your judgement." he replied honestly, making her smile.

"Thanks dad. I just don't know if I should settle for Edward, who would make me happy for a while or break his heart and wait for Kol to eventually come, taking the risk of him never really existing or coming... I mean, what if I break things off with Edward and wait my entire life for someone who won't come? He could stay daggered forever... worst, I could have imagined everything and none of it could be true!"

"Now Bella, do you really believe that you imagined it all?" He asked her seriously.

"No, of course not... But I fear it... The prospect of True Love... What would you do dad?" She asked him, looking him sincerely in the eyes.

"Honestly?" he asked for confirmation.

"I promise I won't get mad, no matter what you say." She nodded.

"Now, it has nothing to do with me not liking Edward or anything... But if I was in your place, with the possibility of a soul mate to come, I would wait... That's what I would do... That's what I'm doing actually..."

"You are?" She asked him.

"Yes, I am... It's not like I know if she exists or not but I'm still waiting to meet the woman of my dreams. I will support you no matter what you do Bella. If you decide you want to wait for Kol, then I promise you, right after your graduation, we'll take the road and look for this Kol... We'll look for his brother and we'll take a lot of vervain and wolfs'bane if we have to. Maybe Jacob would want to help, who knows. I just don't want you to marry a man you don't truly love Bella and I think with what you told me that you're not so sure about your feelings for Edward... You're not sure he'll make you happy either... Am I wrong?" He asked her.

"No... You're not..." She looked down.

"Nobody is forcing you to take a decision this important right away honey... Take your time to think it over. Maybe you should even tell Edward about Kol, see how he reacts... Just...don't make a decision this important too fast. Okay?" He asked her.

"I promise dad. Thanks."

"Now, do I know everything?" Charlie asked his daughter as she served them dinner.

Bella had been about to say yes when James and Victoria's face came in her mind, flashing like a reminder of the darker side of it all.

"Hum... Well, remember when I broke my leg last year in Phoenix?" She asked him.

When he nodded, she told him about James and how Victoria now wanted her dead. Charlie looked furious, then worried, then furious again that someone would want his baby girl dead.

"Well, I guess I need to start looking for a flame thrower or something..." He muttered, making Bella smile at his acceptance of it all.

Bella was truly grateful that she was able to speak so openly to her father. He had reacted much differently that she thought he would and she finally felt like she had with him the kind of relationship she once had with her mother.

When she went to bed that night, Bella closed her window, a sign to Edward that she wanted to be alone and that she didn't want him to come and listen to her sleep talk.

* * *

_**-Mystic Fall's, Present time**-_

Bella appeared in a very fancy room containing a lot of coffins and she immediately knew she was in another _'Kol dream'_. With all the dreams she had, she knew the originals enough to guess that she was standing in Klaus's house. She could hear Klaus speaking with three other male voices. One of them seemed to be Elijah but she didn't go to check because she was standing in the same room as the open coffins, one of them Kol.

She took a deep breath and walked closer. The first coffin was Rebekah. She was in a red dress and had her mother's necklace around her neck. She looked ready for one of those school dances Bella never went to. It didn't take Bella long to notice that the dagger was gone.

She immediately rushed to the next coffin and saw that it was Finn. Since she never cared much for the vampire who tried so many times to kill himself before Klaus daggered him, she moved on to the next one and finally saw Kol.

He was still as handsome as the first time she saw him when she was 6. He was also slowly getting back some of the colors he had lost when he got daggered. She couldn't see his dagger anywhere either. Suddenly, a young woman dressed in a maid outfit entered the room and the three siblings woke up minutes later.

"Elijah said you need to stay here until he shows Klaus the daggers. He wants all of you to leave together and leave Klaus alone." The maid said before she handed them all warm blood bags.

Bella watched as they drank and stayed by Kol's side. As he drank, he looked all around, like he was looking for something.

"What's wrong brother?" Finn asked him.

"I don't know... When I was daggered I... It wasn't all dark all the time like it usually is... I mean it was for a long time but suddenly, over 10 years ago, I started seeing things... Like a dream..." He replied in a hushed voice so Klaus didn't hear them.

"What did you dream of Brother?" Rebekah asked him curiously.

"A girl...her life...I saw her as she dreamt my life... She's waiting for me... I need to find her..." Kol said and Bella's heart jumped up in joy.

He had seen her... he was looking for her right now... he knew she was seeing it...

"A girl? What's so important about her?" Rebekah asked.

"She's my soul mate... she loves me...I love her... I think she can see me now..." He explained quickly, getting Finn's attention.

"You love her?" Finn asked.

"Yes, I do... I'll go and look for her as soon as we've dealt with Klaus." Kol replied.

"Love...Sage..." Finn whispered before looking thoughtful.

"She's been waiting for you, you know?" Rebekah told her big brother.

"Really?" Finn asked her, smiling at his sister while Kol still tried to see Bella who was standing right in front of him.

"Yes. I know how to contact her... She'll rush here the second she knows you're alive." Rebekah smiled, seeing the spark of hope in her brother's eyes when she had never seen it before.

Bella turned around when Elijah entered the room in a suit. She smiled because she always figured he would be a suit kind of guy... She followed them in the dinning room where Klaus looked petrified and afraid. Kol and Rebekah grabbed a dagger and looked ready to jump on Klaus.

* * *

Bella woke up in her bedroom, a smile on her face. She didn't even think twice, she rushed out of her room and joined her father who was drinking his morning coffee.

"Well, someone is in a hurry this morning but Bells, you have to get dressed before going to school." Charlie said, obviously in a good mood.

"I dreamt of him again dad. A new dream. Elijah undaggered them all. I think it happened last night or not too long ago. He knows about me, he dreamt of me too and as soon as they've dealt with their brother Klaus he's going to come looking for me!" Bella explained in a rushed voice, a bright smile on her face.

"That's great Bells." He exclaimed, thinking that if this news made her this happy, then she shouldn't marry Edward at all.

"I'm going to get dressed. I think you're right about Edward, I'll tell him everything about Kol today after school and I'll explain why I can't marry him." She said.

"Why after school?" He asked her.

"It's a sunny day." Bella replied.

"Oh, right. Can't sparkle in public if you're not a fairy!" Charlie replied with humor as Bella rushed back up stairs, never falling down once and ignoring her father's humour.

.

Bella was happier than she had ever been and she knew it obviously showed that she should leave Edward. She also noted that she would need to have an honest conversation with Jacob and figured she would do it on the phone. She didn't want to see him. She didn't want to see the boy who had forced a kiss on her... She had truly hated feeling helpless.

Would Edward and the Cullen still want to protect her against Victoria or would she be on her own with the wolves? That idea lingered on her mind. But then again, Kol was stronger than Cold ones, she had seen it in her dreams... He would be able to protect her and if he changed her, she would be able to protect herself.

* * *

**Here is the second part... I hope you'll like it just as much as the first one!**

**Don't forget, I love to read your reviews! The more I get the faster I write!**

**I wasn't going to include Charlie at first but then I changed my mind... I like the idea of him supporting Bella.**

**Next chapter is all about Kol and his POV. What do you want to see happening? **

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Bella's Choice**_

_**3**_

_This chapter will mostly be concentrated on Kol's POV._

_There will also be a little bit of Klaus/Caroline in here (because I'm a fan!). At some point Klaus uses some of the lines he has in the TV Show. It's only a couple of sentences but I coudln't find a better way to say what needed to be said._

_Have a good read!_

_Lorelei Candice Black_

* * *

Kol woke up in his coffin and immediately started looking all around him. It was a defence mechanisim more than it was curiosity. He couldn't know if he was safe unless he studied where he was. Why had he been awaken now? Who had done it? Where was _she_?

He didn't know where he was but he could see Finn and Rebekah along with a human there. He decided that he was safe enough for the moment but didn't relax either.

The human was talking, explaining things to them and at the moment he didn't care. He concentrated on what he had seen during his daggered sleep. He vaguely heard the human in the room talking about Elijah wanting to take care of Klaus and all he could think about was to run and find Bella in Forks, Washington, wherever that was.

Kol was sure she was seeing this right now, she must be standing close and watching just like he had seen her watch his entire life... Just like he watched every single moment of hers... Since his awaking was important, she had to see this.

Bella Swan...

The name was so fitting...

Rebekah and Finn asked him what was wrong and he couldn't help but answer honestly while drinking the blood the maid brought them. He told them about his Soul Mate.

If Bella was watching this moment like he believed she was, he wanted her to know that he was coming for her, not to give up hope and definitely not to date the Cold One with Red hair and a tast for unnecessary drama. Kol believed that he only was interested in her because her blood sang to him and because her mind was silent to him.

Just before he woke up, meaning a few minutes ago, he saw her meeting this Cold one named Edward Cullen and in the way she was watching him, Kol knew that even if she hadn't fallen in love with him, she at least cared deeply for him... Her heart was too big for her own good. He also saw the events in Phoenix and how Edward played hero when he saved her from James... According to Kol, the entire set-up was a bit dramatic... Edward obviously liked making an entrance and showing Bella just how superior he was. It could have been done differently and with less risks for Bella, even by a Cold one as weak as Cullen.

While Rebekah and Finn talked about Sage, Kol remembered that when he saw the Phoenix event, he had tried to jump in the fight only to go right through James and Edward... he had tried yelling for Edward to tend to Bella intead of fighting James... He had felt powerless, afraid of loosing her before even meeting her.

It would have been so easy for him to deal with it... It would have been fast and clean. He could see it happening in his head...

Bella trying to get away from James while spraying her pepper spray in his eyes, Kol would then arrive to the rescue, snap James' head right off and rush to feed a hurt Bella his blood so she could heal before he ripped the rest of James to pieces and burned him... Most importantly, he wouldn't have ignored Laurent and Victoria getting away... He would have brought Bella back home and once she was safe he would have ran after Victoria and Laurent, killed them, and made sure that they didn't have other friends they could bring in the fight against his Love...

Because he loved her already... How could he not when she was so perfect for him? She was everything he had ever looked for in a woman.

He shook himself out of his thoughts to follow his siblings in the living room. Elijah was telling the two other vampires to leave them to their family business while Klaus looked positively terrified.

Kol thought that it was Klaus' main problem in life, he was always afraid of something and he always let that fear rule his life. Afraid of being alone, afraid of being killed, afraid of betrayal, afraid of Esther and Mickeal, afraid of meeting stron,ger than him... Who knew what else...

The next few moments were quick. They were about to leave Klaus behind when they got the biggest surprise of them all.

Their mother.

Alive and standing in front of them.

Walking through the door, breathing and defending Klaus when she had tried so hard to kill him with every mean possible, even after her death from her spot on the other side...

"I want us to be a family again." She declared before deciding that they would hold a ball the next day to annouce their unity to the town's people.

Kol was tempted to argue and leave but something wasn't right with their mother so he decided to postpone his finding of Bella until he knew for sure that his mother wouldn't hurt anyone. He wanted to know what she had planed and if he needed to stay away from his Bella while she was with another man until then, he was going to do it.

.

The next day, Kol was in front of the mirror, trying on his suit with his brothers while his sister was getting a manicure from a couple of humans.

"Rebekah, tell me how handsome I am." He said to make noise.

Everyone was silent and he wanted to create a bit of action. Finn was too pensive and nervous to talk. Sage was on her way and would be there before the Ball started. He had only a few hours before he saw her.

"Oh Kol, you know I can't be compelled!" Rebekah replied with humor.

Kol was about to say something too when Klaus barged in the room, furious at Rebekah for trying to kill the current Petrova Doppelganger the previous night. Apparently, Elijah had saved her and one of Klaus' hybrids had warned him about what happened. Personally, Kol had never seen what the appeal of the Petrova doppelganger was. She was not even that pretty and always ended up proving what a manipulative bitch she truly was.

He was thankful right now for Bella existing. From what he had seen, she was simply perfect and had nothing in common with the Petrova bitches.

"Why are you still here Kol? I thought you wanted to find your Love as soon as possible?" Finn asked him later while Rebekah got ready for the ball and Klaus went to send some gift to a local girl he liked.

"Something's weird about Mother... I'm not leaving until I know what she has planned and that my Bella will be safe." Kol replied.

"I know what you mean... She wanted to talk to me earlier but as soon as I told her that Sage was on her way she changed her mind and said she didn't need my help after all..." Finn replied.

"What would Sage coming change in Mother's possible plan?" Kol whispered.

"If she's still planing on killing Klaus, I don't know what I could have helped her with...maybe just strenght..." Finn replied.

"Maybe Klaus is not the only one she's planing on killing... Think about it. If Rebekah hadn't said anything about Sage, you would have stayed in your previous depressed state and be willing to die... Maybe she was planing on using this to her advantage..." Kol suggested.

"I hate to think about Mother like this but I have to admit that you might be right... But why insisting on this ball?" Finn asked, confused.

"Maybe she wants one last moment of us all as one big happy family...or maybe she needs for us all to drink the same thing... You can't think of anything magic she could do against us?" He asked his big brother who used to be a great warlock when he was human.

"There might be something... If she has us all drinking a bit of the doppelganger's blood, she could use a simple spell to link us all... Then if one of us dies, we all do... Her coming back to life has to be temporary, she probably has until the full moon or something..." Finn guessed.

"What can we do?" Kol asked, not liking the idea of dying.

"We could be careful of what we drink...and do our best to show her how human we can all be..." Finn suggested.

"Good idea... We should tell the others too..."

"Right... I'll tell Elijah, you can tell Niklaus and Rebekah." Finn said before he hurried out.

Kol sighted and went to look for Klaus and Rebekah. He quickly found them and told them what he and Finn concluded and they had to agree with him.

"I'm going to the ball with Matt Donovan. I can't get any more human than this." Rebekah said.

"I'll be on my best behavior too... It was in my plan anyway... If I want Caroline Forbes to fall for me I need to be as human as possible..." Klaus replied.

"Good, I'll be on my own but mother knows about my Soul mate and she knows I'm planning on finding her as soon as things are settled here... I think we can trust Finn and Sage as well as Elijah to be on their best behavior. I just hope we can make her change her mind, I can't let my Bella much longer with those Cold ones, especially that filthy Edward." Kol said before he turned around and left the room.

.

There was still about an hour before the Ball started and since Rebekah had shown him how to use a computer, Kol was researching the small town of Forks. There wasn't much to find except what he had seen in his _'Bella dreams'_, the '_bear sights'_ that actually where the Quileut wolves and the few death that were the results of Victoria's little revenge.

"What are you doing son?" Esther asked him as she came in the room.

"I'm researching Bella's town... Trying to find out as much as possible but there isn't much available... She lives in a very small town and what little I find I knew already from the dreams..." He told honestly to his mother.

"What do you plan on doing exactly?" She asked him.

"Well, tomorrow or in a few days...not more than a week though, I will go there and find her. I will introduce myself and if she doesn't love me yet I will patiently show her that I'm the best for her, that I love her..." He said.

"Didn't you say she had a boyfriend?" Esther asked.

"Yes, I did. He's a Cold one changed at the age of 17 in 1917... From what I saw, he's very controlling and he wants her to stay human... He doesn't understand that she doesn't want to be with him her entire life if she has to grow old to see him and his entire family stay young." Kol explained.

"You don't like him... Will you kill him?" She asked him.

"No, not unless he attacks her or hurts her... Even if she doesn't love him as much as she used to, she will still care for him, it's the kind of person she is." Kol replied, his eyes shining with the love he felt for Bella.

"You truly love her already... With only the few visions you were sent..." She realised.

"Yes Mother, I do. I only want her to be safe and happy... I know she loves me too but if for some crazy reason being with this Edward is what makes her happy, then I'll stand by and only be her friend..." He explained, praying it was wrong and that she would love him and forget her feelings for the sparkling boy.

"So, you're just going to stay alone all night?" She asked him.

"Well, you'll need someone to dance with right mother? Elijah asked the widowed mayor, Rebekah is going with some human she likes, Finn will have Sage and even Klaus has a date. It won't feel right to even dance with any random girl when Bella is waiting for me..." Kol said.

If his mother agreed, then she was on the way to changing her mind about them and there was a chance that she wouldn't kill them. If she refused and stayed cooped up in her new room most of the night, then she was dead set on killing them.

Esther looked thoughtful for about a second before she said:

"You're right my son... You and your siblings, you're surprising me today... It looks like you're all really ready to live in peace with the world..."

"Well, maybe we always were but it wasn't easy to live happily in peace with Father always behind us trying to kill us all." Kol told her as he could hear in the drive way, Sage and Finn reuniting.

"You're right... Well, I'll save you the first dance son." She said before she left to finish getting ready.

.

As he drank some Champagne, Kol looked at all the people in the room. He had danced with his mother and now she was talking with Sage and Finn while both Salvatore brother argued to dance with the doppelganger.

He was bored, he didn't want to be here. He wanted to be in Forks and to have his perfect Love in his arms, safe and happy. He remembered seeing her the day she was told about him, and he saw her reaction when Henrik woke up Klaus to see the wolves. It was touching to see her 6 years old self trying to wake him up while his baby brother was killed. He also had been touched by her sincere tears.

He had seen every step of her life. He saw her in school, he saw how much she loved reading, he saw her on vacations with her father... He hated it when her first crush ended up being Edward. He personally thought that this boy didn't deserve to even touch Bella.

"Thinking about Bella brother?" Elijah asked him.

"Of course."

"You look bored..."

"That's because I am... I never thought I'd be the type of man to ever be bored in a party because the right girl isn't there but...well, here I am..." Kol replied, resigned.

"You'll see her soon, I'll even come with you in case you need help dealing with those Cold ones..." Elijah promised with a friendly smile.

"Thanks brother." Kol smiled.

They both turned around to see Klaus coming back inside, half running after Caroline Forbes.

"She's got him wrapped around her little fingers!" Kol chuckled.

"That's a good change for him... Love suits him pretty well." Elijah replied, knowing pretty well that his brother could hear him and that it would get him thinking.

The night went on and Esther never went back up stairs. When Elena came to her, asking why she wanted to see her, Esther simply apologized for trying to kill her and went back to talking with people.

When the party finally ended, the guests left and the Originals smiled at the Salvatore and Elena's disappointed look. Once the last guest had left, Esther asked them all to stay before they went to bed.

"I'll make it as short as possible. My coming back was temporary and I wanted to use the occasion to kill you all, thinking you were monsters. Today and tonight you showed me that I was wrong. I only have until the next full moon at the latest to stay here but that's if I work against you. Since I decided not to kill you, I'll die back during the night. I just want you to know that I'm proud of what you've all become lately and that I want you to stay united, even when you have disagreement. Kol, I wish you the best of luck with finding your Love. I think you'll need help from your siblings, you know it... Remember, all of you, you can be apart and stay united." Esther said.

It was silent for some time before one by one, they all went to hug her and kiss her goodbye. Instead of going to bed, they all stayed with her and spent the entire night remembering the good days and sharing happy memories. They also used the occasion to take several pictures and Esther made sure to spend a little more time with Rebekah who needed her mother.

When she died, it was painless, she simply fell asleep and died in her sleep. They softly carried her in the back yard where they had a small ceremony and buried her. Klaus quickly ordered a special headstone and ordered one of his hybrids to set it up once it arrived.

.

The next day, Kol went shopping for everything he would need and it was decided that they would all come with him to find Bella.

Klaus asked for only one day to deal with some things before he left and Kol gave it to him, hoping it wouldn't take longer than that and that they would arrive before Bella agreed to marry Edward. Indeed, if he only slept for a couple of hours, it had been enough for him to see the Cold one proposing to a confused Bella. Kol knew that if he waited too long he would loose her and so he wanted to rush to Forks.

Kol, Elijah, Rebekah, Finn and Sage watched as Klaus went to see Caroline Forbes.

"Klaus? Listen, I admit that I found the drawing you left me last night romantic and all but I don't have time for you today. I'm sorry but I have a lot to do." Caroline sighted.

"I just came to tell you goodbye Caroline." he said.

"Goodbye? What? Where are you going?" Caroline asked, looking lost for a moment.

"I'm going with my sibling to help my brother Kol find his Soul Mate. I'll come back but I don't know when it will be... Before I leave, I want you to know that I do love you Caroline, but I understand how it could all be too soon for you. I know I'm never going to want anybody else but you're still in love with Tyler... He's your first love... I intend to be your last. For this reason, I give you my word that I won't control Tyler anymore. He is now free from the sire bond. I won't try anything against him... But Caroline, you have to keep in mind that I will never give up on you... Here is my phone number in case you need anything... This is only Goodbye, we'll see each other again soon." He said, looking her sincerely in the eyes.

"What's in the bottle?" She asked when he gave her a big dark bottle.

"My blood, just in case you or the people you care about end up running in trouble with a werewolf." He said with one of those smile that made her knees go weak.

"That's...very considerate of you..." She said, obviously looking for the right word to say.

Klaus was shocking her and definitely winning points in the race to her heart. Leaving town the way he did was going to show her who he could be when he wanted. Kol knew that his big brother was definitely going to end up with the blond vampire some day.

While Klaus finished saying his goodbye to Caroline, Kol concentrated on Bella's face, trying to stay calm until they went to the car and to the airport where Elijah appointed a private plane just for them. His brother had tried to find a house to buy in Forks but they didn't find anything. They'll just have to stay at the local motel until they could compel some old woman to let them stay with her... Also, Kol was sure that Bella and her father would offer their house to them. Instinctively, he just knew that she wouldn't let them stay at the hotel.

When Klaus came back to them, Kol was the first seated in the car, making his siblings chuckle with amusement at his eagerness.

"There's a small airport in Forks, we'll be able to land there. We're taking a small plane for this reason." Elijah informed them.

Nobody complained. Even thought some of them would have liked to travel with more class, they didn't protest, knowing that Kol would like it better this way. He was already a nervous wreak.

.

When they were on the plane, Kol fell back asleep. He dreamt of Bella asking for her father's advise and his siblings used the occasion to discuss the situation.

"Do you really think we can trust those Cold ones to let her go without a fight?" Elijah asked them.

"I'm even surprised they managed to live as a family for so long... Cold ones usually don't get along too well in number..." Sage said.

"If they don't we'll just have to fight them. We're stronger than them. I'll call some of my hybrids in if I have to." Klaus added.

"It might take some time for them to come here..." Rebekah said.

"No, it won't. I have a group of hybrids in Seattle. They'd be able to be there in just a few minutes." Klaus replied.

"Minutes?" Elijah asked surprised.

"Well, yes, minutes. I called this morning and they're on their way to Port Angeles so they can be closer if needed." Klaus explained.

"I just hope that no harm comes to Bella on the way... Kol wouldn't like it..." Finn concluded.

.

Later, when they landed in Forks, Kol could barely contain himself. A couple of cars were already waiting for them and it was the late afternoon.

"Where to now?" Klaus asked Kol.

"To Bella's house I think." He replied, getting in the first car.

* * *

**Here is the third chapter! I hope you like it.**

**I want to take a minute to thank all of my reviewers! I didn't have time to answer to all of them, but keep in mind that I always answer a few of them, especially the biggest ones. Anyway THANK YOU for reading, favoriting, following and/or reviewing this story, you guys are the best!**

**Don't forget to review! If I get more reviews than what I got for the first chapters, I'll update earlier!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Bella's choice**_

_**4**_

* * *

While Kol was making his way toward her, Bella was going out of school and getting ready to drive to the Cullen's house. She had no idea that Kol was getting closer to her by the minute but she felt, in her heart, that she needed to break things off with Edward as soon as possible. She didn't know why, she just felt it.

For the first time since she had gotten her old truck, she hoped he would break down, just to give her a little more time to come up with a way to say everything to the Cullen's.

She didn't know if Alice could see her coming or not, she didn't know either if she could see her decision or not but she had to do it. She was hoping that Kol, who was now awake, would come soon, in time to help her fight Victoria, but at the same time she didn't want to see him risking his life for her.

She wished there were a way for her to do what she was about to do and keep everyone happy but she knew it was impossible, someone had to suffer and this time, she wasn't sure she wanted to sacrifice her happiness for someone else... There had to be a limit to selflessness, a moment where it stops being noble and when it turns into stupidness.

She drove even slower than usual, taking her time, not because she didn't want to have an accident (though she trully didn't have time for an accident now) but because she wasn't really eager to break Edward's heart. She didn't need Alice's gift to know that it was going to be difficult. She hated hurting people and Edward was no exception. Even if she wasn't in love with him, she still loved him and he was still at least a friend... Could she really feed him the _"It's not you it's me but let's be friend"_ line? Would he even accept it?

What if he went to the Volturi again? She didn't want him to die or go kill himself off. She still cared about him and his family and didn't want to see him die. She had to find a way to get him to accept it and to want to stay alive.

When she parked her car in her usual spot in front of the house, nobody was waiting for her outside and it made her even more nervous. Should she even do this in a closed space? Would she be safe? Wouldn't it be better to wait for them to get out of the house to tell them?

She pictured herself keeping the car running, opening the window of her car door and telling them everything super fast before driving off very fast but the sad truth was that beside it being quite coward, they could easily outrun her truck.

She had to go in.

Biting her lips nervously, she clumsily got out of her trusty old truck and walked to the front door. Esmee opened it before she could even knock. Well, at least they had heard her arrive.

"Bella! Alice didn't see you coming! Come on in." The Cullen mother greated her, making Bella feel even worth for being so welcome in a house where she was about to drop a bombshell.

As soon as she entered the house, everyone gathered around her to greet her.

Edward rushed to take her in his arms and she didn't even have the occasion to stop him before she was locked in the arms she didn't want to be in anymore, feeling crushed and prisoner, she needed out. It was the first time she felt that way and she figured that it might have something to do with her decision to give True Love a chance.

"Edward, let me go." She complained, making the copper haired boy chuckle as he opened his arms.

He had intended to only give her room to breath but she stepped out of them as soon as she could.

"Bella, Love? What's wrong?" Edward asked her, worried.

"I don't know, I don't see it..." Alice whispered, probably in answer to Edward.

Edward and Alice had such a connection, Bella always wondered if it only was because of their gifts or because there was something else between them, something deeper than the bond of adoptive siblings. Also it did annoy her some times, like today. Couldn't Edward just wait for her to explain it? Did he really need for Alice to invade her privacy to know it? It was like he didn't trust her to tell him the truth...

"We need to talk and since I don't want to repeat everything to Alice and everyone else later, we should do it here, with everyone present." Bella announced as she bravely marched toward the living room.

"Why didn't I see any of this coming? Why don't I see the outcome? Bella's a blur now." Alice mumbled in annoyance as she pressed her fingers on the sides of her forehead, concentrating.

Bella tried to chase out of her head the idea that Alice looked like someone that was constipated.

"I don't know why you coudln't see this coming Alice but please, just sit down and listen." Bella asked as Carlisle joined them in the room.

"Go ahead Bella, we're all listening." Carlisle encourgaed her kindly.

"Here is the thing... I knew about the supernatural world before I met all of you. I've know about it ever since I was 6 years old." Bella started.

"What? How?" Edward asked.

"What now!" Roslaie mumbled, rolling her eyes.

"I was at the market with my mother one day and an old woman got knocked over by some running by teenage boy. I rushed to help her pick up her groceries and she wanted to thank me. She took both of my hands in hers and..." Bella hesitated.

She wished she could have someone else do this for her, she wished that there was a way for her to tell them what she came to say without hurting any of them.

"And?" Emmett encourged her to go on, eager to know what was coming next.

"...and she told me that the supernatural existed. Werewolves, witches, shape sifters, different races of vampires... She told me that my Soul mate, my one true love would be a part of this supernatural world." Bella said and winced at the super happy and hopeful look on Edward's face.

Rosalie rolled her eyes, looking tired of this _'Bella and Edward'_ thing. Bella took a minute to think that Rosalie might actually end up happy about what she was about to announce.

"See Edward, didn't I tell you you two were perfect for each other? I'm always right." Alice asked smuggly as Edward looked at his sister and nodded eagerly.

"No." Bella said louder than she intended.

Her tone had also been harsher than necessary but at least it got Alice and Edward out of their happy bubble of dream. She couldn't let Alice give Edward false hope now. It was just wrong.

"No?" Everyone asked, looking up at her in surprised.

"She also told me that I would dream of that soul mate, of his life, that very night... Every night since that day I've dreamt of him, of his family, of his life..." Bella was about to continue but was interrupted by Rosalie:

"You knew about us all along! How could you lie like this!"

"His name is Kol, he's an Original Vampire...from the first family of vampires... He's not a Cold one like you... He's from the first family of a more traditional kind of vampires." Bella announced, ignoring Rosalie's interruption.

"Klaus' brother?" Carlisle asked, trying to ignore Edward who hadn't moved and looked to be in a shocked state.

"You know him?" Bella asked surprised.

She figured that if any of the Cullen had met the Originals before, she would have seen it at some point.

"No, but I've heard about him while I was at the Volturi's... They say he's their friend but they fear him because he's more powerful than them. I've heard that he had a bit of a temper and daggered his siblings quite often..." Carlisle replied.

"Yes... Kol was daggered over a hundred years ago but got undaggered recently... I don't know the exact date but well... He's undaggered and doing well... He's also on his way here to find me." Bella said, knowing that the hard part of the conversation was only just starting.

She knew that Edward would be hard to convince, he would try and fight this, just like he fought to have his way all the time. Alice wouldn't go with it either, Bella realised. She would have to use a lot of energy convincing those two that her being with Kol was for the best. She just hoped that they wouldn't use her guilt to keep her with them. She knew Alice could easily manipulate her and she didn't want this.

"Oh don't worry my Bella, we'll protect you from him, we won't let him take you." Edward said, rushing to wrap her in his arms.

When she stepped back from him before he could reach her, he seemed to get it and stopped, his face hardening.

"Of course we won't." Alice added.

"Edward... Ever since I was 6... I slowly fell for him... He is my soul mate, my one perfect love. There's no competing with that. I'm sorry... I love you but it's not enough... I love him more... When I started dating you he was daggered and I figured that I would never be able to find him and un-dagger him on my own so I gave up on the idea of this perfect love waiting for me and settled for you but he's on his way and he wants me... I'm sorry... I know I'm being mean right now but you have to accept it... I'm sorry." Bella said, tears in her eyes from the pain she was giving Edward.

She felt like she was being cruel. She felt very evil at the moment for hurting him like this. It was like stealing a lollipop from a starving child... It hurt her heart to have to hurt someone like this. She should have stayed away from the begining. But then again, would he have let her or would he have given in and went after her anyway?

"It's okay Bella honey, if anything I think we can all understand the importance of True Love." Esmee said kindly.

"How can you even say that!" Edward protested, glaring at his mother, making Carlsile growl in defence of his mate.

"You can't do this Bella! You were going to be my sister." Alice screeched.

"We can still be friends... I still love all of you..." Bella protested.

"You can't leave me Bella... You can't leave me and Alice..." Edward said brokenly.

"You know that Edward will go to the Volturi as soon as you leave him Bella. How can you do this to us?" Alice accused Bella, a sad look on her face.

Bella had seen it coming and she had been right, she realised. Alice was trying to use her guilt to manipulate her.

"Oh for God's sake, for once she's making the right decision. She's got a great chance to be with her Soul mate, just let her be! It's not like she's disappearing forever, you'll all still be able to see her all the time. Even if she moves away we'll be able to visit her." Rosalie intervened.

Bella smiled at the blond Cullen that had never been on her side before and nodded, showing everyone that yes, they would stay in touch.

"No! How can you even say that? Bella is ours!" Alice protested.

"Excuse me?" Bella and Jasper said at the same time.

"Alice, Bella doesn't belong to us, she's her own person and she's free to make her own decisions..." Esmee scolded.

"Bella, we all love you and will support you no matter what you do. If you decide to stay with Edward and to marry him we will be there for you and if you decide to go with this Kol we will support you in anyway that we can." Carlisle said with a soft smile.

Bella was about to thank him for his support when she was interrupted once again, by Edward, trying to control her life, as always.

"You can't leave Bella." Edward said, grabbing her arms a little too tightly, hurting her.

"You're hurting me Edward, let me go." She protested.

It was like he couldn't hear her at all. He was still holding her and she felt like she was prisoner of a cold statue that refused to move to let her go. She was going to have bruises soon...or worst, if he didn't let go of her.

"You think you can break up with me and stay friend with the family? No! It's not the way things are done Bella! It's either you chose me and marry me now and then you can stay in touch with my family or you chose that stupid Kol and forget about us all." Edward growled.

He looked pretty confident that she would choose to be with him and his family. Especially when Alice started looking at Bella like a lost puppy, begging her to stay. Bella had never been able to resist Alice until now and he didn't see why that would change.

"Let go Edward, you're hurting me!" Bella cried out as he tightened his hold on her to force her to choose him.

Emmett and Jasper rushed to Edward and managed to tear him away from Bella.

"You should go while we reason with him Bella." Carlisle suggested in a very tensed voice that didn't hide his fear and worry for his first son and first friend.

Bella nodded and left the house she thought of as home, thinking that this was the end, she had lost an entire family in just a few minutes... Alice didn't even look at her as she left. She had her eyes closed and was concentrating, trying to see the future. Bella figured she was trying to find a way to get her to stay with them.

Jasper smiled kindly at her and used all of his power on Edward, making him as calm as possible. Bella knew, with that smile, that he was on her side and that she would see him again. He would at least come to say goodbye.

Emmett waved at her with a bright smile that gave her hope that she would see him again. She was even surprised when Rosalie smiled at her. Apparently, the blond woman had always know that something was off and was now on her side.

Bella looked back at Carlsile and Esmee as she reached the door and saw them smile at her, saddly. They were obviously worried for Edward and it's with tears in her eyes that Bella went back in her trusty truck and left the Cullen house, hoping she would still be welcome there in the future.

As she drove carefully, ignoring her tears, Bella considered even going to the reservation, to speak with her friend Jacob but remembered that she was mad at him and decided on going home instead. She wasn't strong enough right now to break Jacob's heart too. She just wanted a friend to talk to but she was short on them at the moment. She could have called Angela of course, but the girl didn't know anything about the supernatural and wouldn't understand anything. Bella was on her own.

As soon as she arrived home, Bella parked her truck and sat on the steps of her front porch, not capable of going inside yet. She hated hurting people and yet she had broken the heart of the first boy she had ever dated... Did this make her a bad person?

Would Edward really end up going to the Volturi again? Now that she thought of it, was he really going to get himself killed last time he went there or was it all just for show? She was growing more confused by the minute. Maybe she was just trying to find faults in Edward and Alice so that she didn't have to feel guilty about leaving them and choosing love... But then again, they were the ones who forced her to choose, they were the one who refused to be just friends.

If Edward ended up running back to the Volturi, was it her duty to convince him to come back to his family or should she let the other Cullen's handle him? Should she really risk her life for him again? She did feel bad for having to break his heart but the reaction he had earlier changed a lot of things. He acted too possessive, too dramatically... Did Alice really didn't see anything coming? What was going on?

She cried silently while trying to forget the pain she felt where Edward had grabbed her earlier.

.

While Bella was driving home, Carlisle did his best to convince Edward and Alice that this was for the best, that they should let Bella be happy but his gifted chidlren seemed convinced that Bella was wrong and would only be happy with them. Nobody could convince them and when Carlisle thought that Alice being so concentrated was because she was looking for a way to calm Edward, he had been wrong, she was looking for a way to allow Edward to escape them all.

Nobody was sure of how he did it but one minute Edward was being restrained by Emmett and Jasper and the next Emmett was missing an arm and Edward was running off. Alice used the occasion to jump on Jasper and rip one of his arms off too.

The soldier was shocked because he no longer could feel any of the love and adoration he was used to feel from Alice. She had attacked him, betrayed him in the worst way possible. A mate, even if not true love,wouldn't have been able to hurt the other like this... She had somehow manipulated him.

Jasper didn't know how Alice and Edward had managed to fool him, he didn't know why he didn't feel the betrayal when they did it. Maybe Alice had found a way to mask their emotions from him... Maybe she had been using him all along... Maybe the disdain et hatred he was feeling just now was the true emotions she had when it came to him.

Carlisle took the time to fix Emmett and Jasper while Esmee and Rosalie held Alice to prevent her from going after Edward and helping him. They knew that if Edward and Alice joined forced they would be unstoppable.

"Keep Alice here, don't let her go, we're going after Edward." Carlisle ordered before he ran after his first son with Emmett and Jasper.

.

Kol was driving as fast as he could and when they finally arrived in the right street he could feel a pull in the direction he knew was her house. Somehow, he was being pulled to her only now. He parked his car only to see that the Cold one was obviously scaring his Bella. He knew she was afraid because he'd seen that look on her face before, in his dreams and he understood that this was the reason for the pull he had felt. She needed him. He had to save her. He knew her enough to know that she was terrified of the Cold one.

He heard her begging him to leave and he also heard the crazy boy's reply. Faster than his siblings, Kol got out of the car and said:

"You heard her Cold one. Get away from her now."

He smiled when Bella breathed a "Kol!" full with relief.

She knew that she was safe now that he was here.

She knew that she could trust him to be safe.

He ignored his siblings and didn't look to see what they were going to do, he just stood there, ready to defend his girl.

.

"See Bella, you can't leave me, it hurts you too much." Edward told Bella as soon as he appeared.

Bella looked up and couldn't help but be afraid.

"It's having to hurt you and Alice that hurts me Edward...not leaving you. I'm sorry." She replied, hoping that someone would come and save her before Edward did anything crazy.

"You can't exist apart from me Bella. We're one together, you know it. You're mine. Remember how you were when I left? You can't be without me, you'll only be miserable again until I come back." Edward said in a dead voice that scared Bella.

"Stop this and leave now Edward. Go home. I told you all I had to say. I'm sorry I have to hurt you but I'm not in love with you anymore. We can be friends but nothing more. Now you need to leave. Charlie will be home soon and I'm tired." She said in a voice as strong as she could, despite her tears.

"You're not yourself Bella. You need to come with me, Alice knows how to fix you." Edward said, walking toward her like she was a scared and dangerous animal.

"No, I'm not! Leave me alone now Edward, you're scaring me." Bella yelled, crying.

To top it all, the pain in her arms from where he had held her earlier was not going away and she just wanted to go and put ice on it.

Edward wasn't listening to her and was still walking her way when she heard car doors closing. She didn't look away from Edward to see who it was though, she feared that the minute she looked away she would find herself trapped or maybe even dead.

Suddenly, a voice she had only heard in her dreams resonated through the yard and she knew that she coudl relax, that everything would be alright. That voice was like hearing a distent police siren when you're being robbed. It filled her with relief, gave her hope, she felt safe.

"You heard her Cold one. Get away from her now." The strong lovable voice ordered in an angry tone.

"Kol!" Bella breathed in relief.

Just one word. One name to say it all. It meant "_I know you_", "_I've been waiting for you_", "_I'm glad you're here_", "_Please don't leave me_" and maybe even "_I love you_".

It was okay, she was safe now. She felt like Lois Lane when she's being held against her will by some villain and Superman comes in to save the day. At the moment, Kol was her own superman.

* * *

**So, what's the people's verdict on this chapter?**

**Like it? Hate it? **

**So far I have material for 11 chapters (just as big as this one)... It's growing people, it's growing!**

**Don't forget to review,**

**Some of you asked about Charlie and his Soul mate... Do you think he should have one? Who do you think it should be?**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Bella's choice**_

_**5**_

_Before you start reading, I want to thank personally BANGERZ for doing the image to go with this story. _

_It was a great job._

_Enjoy your reading!_

_Lorelei Candice Black_

* * *

"You heard her Cold one. Get away from her now." Edward heard from behind him in a growling, threatening voice he had never heard before.

He ignored it for a second, thinking it was nothing important since he didn't recognise the voice and he couldn't smell any of the wolves until he heard Bella breathe in relief and happiness:

"Kol!"

That one word from the girl he loved broke Edward's heart and sanity even more than it already was.

He wanted Bella to say his name like this. She wasn't allowed to speak anyone else's name in such an happy voice. He would forbide her. Alice did say that eventually Bella would see reason and recognise that he's the best one for her.

Edward snarled and turned around immediately only to face his rival who had his family with him. He wouldn't let him have Bella. He coudln't. She was his. Nobody else's. If he got rid of the competition, then he would be able to win her over. After all, it was just like in the animal kingdom. The male had to prove to the female that he was the strongest, beat down his rival in front of the female and she would be his. Edward knew that he was going to win, he had to, he was fighting for love.

The only thing that was disturbing Edward was that he couldn't read any of the Original's mind. He tried to convince himself that it was because they were animals and didn't have any thoughts. The fact that they could be stronger than him didn't even cross his mind, he was too far gone for that. In his head, he was the strongest and the best for Bella, those vampires were nothing next to him, he was sure of it.

.

Bella couldn't believe it.

Not only did Kol come to look for her but he did so with his entire family supporting him. She definitely hadn't seen this coming, even Klaus looked supportive and friendly. Well, it wasn't hard for him to look any friendlier than when she saw him dagger Kol...

They had all come along. The entire living family had come. All the siblings. She was amased that they had all come to find her.

She would have liked to take the time to introduce herself and do everything the right way but unfortunately, she couldn't, she didn't have time because Edward was already rushing toward Kol, ready to attack.

"Don't worry Bella, my brother is much stronger than this sparkling baby vamp. It's like a tiger attacking some old piece of cheese. The cheese might be hard, but the tiger can still swallow it." The blond vampire said from beside Bella, making her jump in surprise.

Bella had been so concentrated on Kol and Edward circling each other that she hadn't seen or even heard Rebekah coming next to her. All the others where close to their brother, ready to interveen if necessary.

"Nice to finally meet you in real life Rebekah." Bella replied softly, unable to look away from the fight about to break out.

Rebekah understood how Bella must be feeling and didn't take offence when she didn't talk more with her. Instead, she delicately wrapped an arm around her shoulders, showing her as much support as possible. Bella knew that Rebekah must be excited to meet her too, she had been lonely for a long time and another girl entering their family would help her feel happier since she wasn't that close to Sage.

"Please don't let them hurt each other..." Bella begged nervously when Edward, tired of walking in circle, jumped on the Original vampire.

Obviously Klaus, Finn, Elijah and Sage had heard her plea because they nodded her way and jumped in the fight too. Finn and Sage were holding Kol back while Klaus and Elijah were holding a struggeling Edward.

Bella thought that things couldn't get any weirder when Carlisle, Jasper and Emmett rushed in, ready to take Edward back home. She realised how wrong she had been when she saw her father's cruiser parking in the drive way only a few seconds later.

"What else can go wrong now!" Rebekah exclaimed.

"Don't say that! Next thing you know Jacob and Billy would have chosen today for a surprise visit!" Bella exclaimed, making everyone chuckle (beside Edward who was still trying to break free from Jasper and Emmett who had taken over to restrain him).

In the back of her head, Bella reminded herself that she didn't went to speak with Jacob right now, she was still mad at him for what he had done and thought that he should grow up a bit but now wasn't the time to think about it.

"Bella honey, is everything okay?" Charlie asked, ignoring everyone else for now.

He could guess that the people that weren't Cullen's or his daughter were Kol and his family but he couldn't be sure. Just like he couldn't be sure that everything was fine for his daughter since Edward and another were being held back. He just wanted to know if his daughter was fine. He didn't care that they were all much stronger than he was, he would fight them off if needed to protect his only daughter. Of course he could see the tears on her face but he knew that if they could be tears of sadness or of fear, they could also be tears of anger or of joy. There was no telling with his daughter.

"I don't know.. I think so..." She replied honestly as her father made his way to her while trying to erase all traces of tears from her face as fast as she could.

Charlie could see that something was going on.

When he parked his car he saw Carlisle, Jasper and Emmett grabbing Edward from the other two. He figured that the group he didn't know where the Originals Bella told him about. The one glaring daggers at Edward was probably Kol...

Well, if he had to choose, Charlie decided that he was on Kol's side of things anyway. That guy looked much more capable of keeping his calm than Edward who was trashing around, trying to break free of his brothers. Kol, if it was really him, simply stood still, glaring at Edward.

"I'm guessing Edward didn't take the talk very well then..." he guessed right.

"Dad, this is Kol, his younger sister Rebekah, Klaus and Elijah and here are Finn and Sage." Bella introduced quickly, trying to ease everything and take some of the weirdness of the situation away.

"Do you need me to stay with you Bells?" He asked his daughter.

It's not like he could do anything in case one of them decided to attack but if she wanted his moral support, he was going to give it to her. He might even jump in front of her if something happened. It didn't matter if they were all much stronger than he was, he would do anything to protect her.

"You told him about us! You told our secret! How could you! You betrayed us." Edward exclaimed and yelled at her from his struggeling place.

"He's my father, he had to know." Bella protested, already feeling guilty.

She still had tears in her eyes and Kol hated it. His first meeting with her was supposed to be romantic and she was supposed to be smiling brightly, not crying because some jack-ass made her feel like shit. It was suppose to be a moment they both would have been happy to remember forever...not like this.

On his way here he had imagined her running in slow motion toward him with a big bright smile on her face. he would have had a big bouquet of flowers for her and open arms to hug her when she reached him... It would have been perfect...

"If you know what's good for you Cold One you'll leave Bella and her father alone!" Kol growled back as his face vamped out.

"Look at him Bella, look at his face! It's the face of an animal!" Edward screeched.

"Why don't we all take this to our house? It's bigger and we will be able to discuss things calmly... Away from the neigbours's prying eyes." Carlisle suggested before Edward could reply anything that would end up with him on the ground in pieces.

"Why not, I'm sure we have a lot to discuss." Elijah agreed.

"My big brother, always trying to be the diplomat... It's good that he's here because I think Kol would have ended up killing this red haired Cold One in an instant." Rebekah commented, trying to comfort Bella.

Charlie ended up deciding to come too and Sage and Finn self appointed themselves his body guards while Bella was protected by Rebekah and Kol was in front of her. The vampire was still angry and he didn't want his first conversation with his True Love to be an angry one. He decided to wait a few minutes until he could calm down to speak to her.

.

Bella was in a car with her father, Rebekah, Kol and Elijah. Klaus, Sage and Finn were in the other one while Carlisle, Emmett, Jasper and Edward were running home.

"I'm sorry Bella... I didn't want our first meeting to go like this..." Kol said, looking at her from the front seat.

"It's okay... I, too, had imagined something different... It's not your fault." She replied.

She tought it was hers.

"It's not yours either Bells." Charlie reminded her.

He knew his daughter too well.

Bella was about to say something else when Rebekah put another comforting arm around her shoulders, making her wince.

"Did I hurt you?" Rebekah exclaimed, surprised since she had barely touched the girl.

"No, you didn't. Edward got a tight hold on me earlier... It's just bruises. It's nothing... I've had worst." Bella replied as immediately, Elijah, Rebekah and Kol started to growl.

"When we get out of this car I'll give you some of my blood to heal you." Kol promised as he tried to calm down.

He knew very well that she had had much worst, he had seen it, but he still didn't like it. He hated seeing her hurt and now that he could do something about it, he wasn't going to just stand by and do nothing.

"That might not be a good idea..." Bella replied shyly as Charlie chuckled.

"Why is that?" Elijah asked.

"Bells faints at the smell of blood." Charlie said in a chuckle.

"Oh go ahead and laugh it up, I can see the irony in it." She replied as Kol smiled but said:

"We'll try... maybe you won't faint at mine. I'm special." He winked at her before he turned back to the front, liking the soft blush that crept on her cheek.

They parked their car and Bella vaguely wondered how they knew where to go but she figured that they might have been following the Cullen who had been runing in the woods ahead of them.

"You want to try it now Bella?" Kol asked her softly before they even left the car.

"Sure... Might as well be stronger for the big confrontation right?" She replied with a shy smile.

Kol bit his wrist and offered it to Bella who took it and drank from it like she had seen in her _'Kol dreams'_. The smell was nothing like the disgusting human blood smell. It was sweet and delicious to the taste. She found herslef thinking that she could see herself drinking this nectar every day, her own special vitamin.

Kol really enjoyed having her drink his blood and feeling her soft lips on his skin. He couldn't wait to finally be able to kiss her and wrap her in his arms and had to fight really hard the dirty thoughts that entered his mind. Now wasn't the time.

"Thanks." She said as she freed his arm.

"You're welcome Darling. I'm happy you feel better." He replied with a charming smile that made her blush even worst.

Suddenly, they heard a yell from the open door of the house.

"How dare you give her your blood, you monster!" Edward's voice tonned through the woods, makings brids nesting nearby fly off in a hurry to get away.

Kol just rolled his eyes and ignored Edward, just like everyone was doing.

Slowly, everyone entered the house and after some quick introductions, Alice rushed to Charlie and tried to charm him into her way.

"Oh Charlie, you have to help Bella right now before she does a big mistake. Trust me, you know I'd never do anything against her. She has to marry Edward. Trust me Charlie, you need to order her to accept Edward's offer if you don't want her to die." Alice had a hand on Charlie's arm and he looked about to agree but the second Sage pushed Alice's hand away, Charlie seemed to gain all of his faculties back.

"Bella is too young to get married Alice and I trust her to choose whomever she wants. According to what she told me, I also think that Kol would be better for her than Edward." Charlie replied, stepping away from the petite Cold One whoes charm was so hard to resist.

Alice huffed in annoyance and glared at Sage as Edward started a rant about Charlie never giving him a fair chance in the first place.

Rebekah was still close to Bella and Alice had taken to glaring at her, obviously not liking the blond who appeared to be her competition for the best friend/sister in law open position in Bella's life. Bella wondered what happened to the pretty and cheering best friend she loved so much. Either Alice had been one hell of a good actress before or something was greatly wrong with her now. Somehow, she thought that it was the first suggestion. She felt that Alice had somehow manipulated things into the way she wanted them and that Kol's arrival made her loose her hold on everything and everyone.

For a while it was very quiet and tensed. Everyone was observing the others, waiting for anyone to make a move or say something.

"Oh, this is crazy. I don't really see what the big problem is here. My daughter is old enough to make her own choices. She decided she didn't want to marry Edward and that she wanted to be with Kol. That's her choice. You all just have to accept it." Charlie snapped, tired of the heavy silence that was, in his sence, kind of pointless and a waste of time.

"I agree with Charlie. Edward just have to deal with the fact that he's not the one. It's a part of life." Rosalie said, maybe a little to harshly.

"You shut up! You never even liked Bella in the first place. You never wanted her in our family." Edward yelled.

"I didn't want her with you because I knew you wouldn't be able to make her happy Edward. You're too immature for that. You're still stuck in 1917 and Bella is a modern girl." Rosalie snapped back.

Suddenly, everyone started talking all at once, saying their opinion of Bella and who she should be with and what she should do.

"Everyone be quiet!" Bella yelled, making everyone stop talkling and look at her.

Bella was always so sweet, she never yelled at anyone so when she did, everyone stopped to listen to what she had to say.

"Bella Love..." Edward started but Bella interrupted him:

"Don't Edward! I'm too mad at you for now and _don't call me Love_. Do you realised that you spoiled my first meeting with Kol for me? He's been here for less than an hour and I haven't been able to have even a conversation with him and that's all because of you, because you're not capable of understanding that I don't want you anymore. And I don't see why everyone is talking about it because this is _my_ life and _my_ decision. Now Kol and I are going to step outside to talk for a little while, you lot go back to exchanging pointless opinions!" Bella said in a new found hard voice that was due to anger and her being so tired.

"Bella, this isn't you..." Alice started softly, trying to step toward Bella while Jasper held her back, holding her by the back of the neck.

Bella tried not to think of how Alice and Jasper looked like a master holding his dog back right now.

"Oh, this _is_ me! You're just mad because you can't manipulate me into being your personal Barbie Doll anymore. I don't know how you managed to manipulate me and everyone else into your way but I'm _tired_ of it. I swear it's like you have no respect for other people's privacy and tastes. When someone says no, it means **_no_**. Maybe it's because of your gift but you've become so spoiled you stink! And for the last time: I DON'T LIKE SHOPPING." Bella snapped back, having a hard time believing she had lashed out like this when she was mainly a peaceful person.

She was horrified at herself for a moment. What would Kol think of her now? However, she could see the appreciation in most people present, Kol included so she let it go.

"I forbid you to go anywhere with this man Bella." Edward growled dangerously.

"Forbide me? **You** _forbide_ **me**? You have no authority to forbide me _anything_ Edward." Bella said as calmly as she could.

"I like her!" Rebekah exclaimed.

"That's my baby sister! Go Tiger!" Emmett cheered.

"You're **mine** Bella and you can't go anywhere with this _thing_." Edward ordered.

"Who are you calling a thing, rock?" Kol replied, rolling his eyes.

"You can't treat her like a possession Edward. She's not a porcelaine Doll you can keep on a glass shelf. You have to let her go if she wants to go." Esmee tried to reason.

"She's mine!" Edward yelled, his yells making the walls and the windows vibrate, scaring Bella and worrying Charlie.

Bella glanced to the side and was glad to see her father surrounded by Mickealson's.

"He's lost his marbles!" Emmett exclaimed.

"Shut up Emmett! Don't you realise that we're about to lose everything? We need Bella, without her I am noth...**we** are nothing." Alice snapped back.

"You're family is a bit on the dramatic side isn't she?" Klaus asked Carlisle with a chuckle.

"Look who's talking mister King of drama." Rebekah muttered with an amused smirk.

"Well, at least I'm the king of something." Klaus replied, equally amused.

"Alice, Edward, calm down immediately." Carlisle ordered, using a strong, dominative voice Bella has never heard before in the man of science.

"That's it, I'm tired of this. I'm leaving. Kol, his family, my father and I will talk about all we need to talk about at home. I'm tired of this. Esmee, Carlisle, Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett, you're welcome to come over whenever you want. " Bella announced, with tears in her eyes as she started to walk toward the front door.

She hated crying but this endless day had her crying so much she hated it.

Before she could reach it or anyone could follow her, Edward, once again with help from Alice, had escaped his captors and in the blink of an eye he had Bella in a tight hold. He was against one of the corners of the room, the one closer to the door and she knew that if someone didn't stop him quickly, he would be able to make a run for it with her. Her back was pressed against his chest and his left arm held her strongly and tightly around her neck. His other hand was wrapped around her waist.

Bella coudln't move and Edward was pressing his arms so hard against her throat that she could barely breath.

She wondered, in the back of her mind, if Kol's blood, that was still in her, would be able to erase the many bruises Edward was making right now.

.

Klaus didn't know what to do, he hated being helpless and he really wanted for Kol and Bella to be happy together.

She couldn't die now, they were barely starting to be a family again and Klaus felt that her death would divide them all forever, even though they didn't know her. She was the hope their family would unite around...

As soon as he had seen her, he had felt a deep connection with her, one similar to the one he used to have with his favorite sibling, Henrik, before he died. He knew, right then, that she was born to be not only Kol's mate but also his sister. She wasn't only here for Kol, she was here to help him, he could feel it and he wasn't about to let anyone hurt her.

The Original hybrid breathed a little when he remembered that Bella still had Kol's blood in her. Even if she died, she would come back. It would be hard for her and a shock but at least she'd be alive and they would help her through it.

"Bella!" Everyone around him exclaimed.

He didn't however. He wanted what he had to say to stay on the Cold One's head.

"Let our sister go right now Cold one or I'll inject you with so much werewolf venom you'll want to run after your absent tail and mark your territory with your own venom before you die of madness in the most unbearable pain you'll ever know! The pain of changing will be nothing compared to what you'll know if you hurt her." Klaus growled, surprising everyone.

* * *

**So, what do you think? Liked it? hated it?**

**Apparently, the majority of you want Charlie and Liz together. Even if I've done it before (Mystically charmed to fall), I think I will do it again here... Unless I get a better idea later...**

**A big THANK YOU for all the review you're giving me. I also am thankful to all the people who follow this story and/or favorite it. THANK YOU so much to all of you! This story grows because of you.**

**In a future chapter, someone will say "_Size isn't everything, you know..._" Can you guess who is going to say it? To whom it will be said? About what it will be?**

**Please review!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	6. Chapter 6

**_Bella's choice_**

**_6_**

* * *

"Bella!" Everyone exclaimed from their different spot in the room, all worried for the human girl's fate.

Kol and Charlie's voice were the loudest though and they were all afraid for what would come next. Edward looked right out of his mind and there was no predicting what he would do after this. He could kill her, bite her, drain her or take her away and do all of those things... they needed to find a way to keep him in place and soon. One move in the wrong direction and she would die.

"Let our sister go right now Cold One or I'll inject you with so much werewolf venom you'll want to run after your absent tail and mark your territory with your own venom before you die of madness in the most unbearable pain you'll ever know! The pain of changing will be nothing compared to what you'll know if you hurt her." Klaus growled, surprising everyone.

Finn knew that his hybrid brother's weapon of choice was threats but he had a feeling that this once, they weren't empty.

Klaus could go very far to protect the people he cared about or get revenge on someone that had hurt him or someone he loved and he could tell that Klaus already cared about Bella. Katerina Petrova, her dead family and her over 500 years on the run were the proof that you should never cross Klaus. Even if Edward got to walk out of this one alive without having hurt Bella anymore than he already had, Finn knew that Klaus would find him later on and make him pay. Whatever happened now had sealed the Cold One's fate. He had angered the most dangerous supernatural man alive. Finn _almost_ felt sorry for the boy who held Bella but since he held her so tightly, he couldn't bring himself to feel sorry... He, too, felt that he deserved to get hell after going after someone as nice and selfless as Bella Swan.

"What are you doing Bro?" Emmett said, surprised that his brother would go this far.

Emmett could feel Rosalie by his side and he knew the truth. Unlike everyone else, he had known from the begining why she didn't want Bella in their family. She had always felt that he wasn't mature enough for someone like Bella. She knew that Edward would end up keeping Bella prisonner instead of letting her be her own person... He wanted to change too much in Bella, he wanted to shape her into who he wanted her to be and from the begining he had been using Alice to help him do it. Emmett had had a hard time believing Rosalie's opinion but now he had to admit that she had been right from the begining.

"If I can't have her, then _nobody_ can." Edward said in an overly dramatic way one usually sees in movies from a crazy person (before said crazy person dies tragically).

Bella wasn't looking scared anymore, she looked terrified. She had tears running down her cheeks and it was obvious that she would soon loose consciousness if someone didn't do something soon. She was pale, very pale.

"How dramatic of you!" Klaus exclaimed, rolling his eyes.

"You're the one talking brother." Elijah replied softly, managing to keep his legendary calm and composure, even in situations as stressful as this one.

However, he knew that he wouldn't be able to keep his calm for much longer. He might have been gifted with much more self control than his siblings but he, too, had felt a connection to Bella the moment he saw her and he didn't want to lose her. He felt like she was what his family needed to be one and united forever and he already cared deeply for her, even without having talked to her. He could tell that she had a kind heart and that it wasn't fair that she was being hurt this way... but that was the problem with Cold Ones.

They were frozen and when a change occurred, like falling in love, it was often hard to change back. When Bella broke up with Edward, his mind, who was frozen in '_love_' mode wasn't capable of handling it and it drove Edward crazy. Elijah encountered a few Cold Ones who managed to go back to being themselves after a similar situation happening to them and he thought that Edward stood a chance with Carlisle and Esmee's care, but if he killed Bella, he wouldn't even get the chance to heal because they would all jump in to kill him. He wouldn't have much more than seconds to live, Elijah knew it.

"Let Bella go son, this isn't you. She deserves to be free and happy with whomever she chooses, let her be. There is someone else for you out there, you'll see." Carlisle said, afraid for the girl who almost got to be his daughter.

Carlisle would have like for Bella to be one of his daughters, she was easy to love, kind and full of compassion. She could have passed for his and Esmee's natural daughter had they not looked so young. If she became a Mickealson and changed into a vampire from their kind, he would at least get to keep in touch with her and have refreshing conversations with her... This couldn't happen if Edward killed her. She was too good hearted, she couldn't die, not like this.

Esmee was torn.

She wanted to protect Edward who had helped her getting over her baby boy's death but she also loved Bella. Bella Swan represented everything Esmee would have loved to see in her own daughter and she didn't want to see her harmed either. She wished there was a way both of them could walk out of this situation unharmed but she knew she was kidding herself. Edward had angered very powerful people and they might all have to pay for the consequences of Edward's crazy gesture. Why couldn't he accept it and let Bella go? They could have stayed friend and then he would have had the chance to win her over again, even if Esmee knew it would have been pointless... Maybe if Bella hadn't spoken of a Soul mate but of just needing some time... Esmee couldn't help but think that everything would have gone much better if Bella had been smart enough to warn them before hand instead of putting them in front of the truth right away. If Edward had been prepared, everything would have been much better.

"Why would I? She deserves to die, she's just another manipulative bitch, she used me to attract this Kol and now she wants to hurt me, she enjoys this." Edward yelled, like a crazy person that he was.

Bella still had tears running down her cheek, she wanted to justify herself, to say that she wasn't like this, that he had it all wrong, but she couldn't do it, she could barely breeze and was starting to see black spots before her eyes. He was chocking her and she was going to die. In the back of her mind, she was, however, happily surprised by Klaus' reaction. He had accepted her into his family and she knew he was capable of great things for the people he cared about, she had seen it. He would help save her... She hope it would happen before Edward broke her neck or took all the air out of her without letting her replace it... She wasn't ready to die, not when she had just met Kol.

Alice ran next to Edward after finally getting free from Jasper who got distracted finally looking at Rebekah for the first time since she had arrived and it was the start of the action.

Edward let go of Bella's waist to grab Alice's helpful hand and while he was looking at his psychic sister, Kol rushed to him and from the side, ripped apart the arm that was holding Bella by the throat. Elijah grabbed Bella as Kol pushed her delicately his way and got her away in one big jump back while Sage grabbed Alice by the throat and pinned her against the wall to prevent her from running or doing anything else. Klaus rushed to help his little brother while Jasper went to stand by Bella, helping her calm down with his gift.

Charlie was also next to his daughter, along with Rebekah who didn't want anything to happen to her future sister and had been standing protectively in front of Charlie the entire time.

Charlie was surprised by how easily he had accepted everything and how easily he could deal with the present events. Earlier in the day, he had called Billy, starting by telling him of Bella's soul mate dreams and ending by telling him that he knew the reservation's secret and that he would keep it. The good point was that now he could help them cover up the 'bear sightings' and he could stop hunting them down. It had been hard to accept at first for Billy, he had been really mad at Bella but he quickly calmed down and understood that Charlie knowing was a good thing for the tribe. They would be in a lot less trouble now.

He vaguely wondered, as he tried to help his daughter calm down, if he could ask Jacob to break the treaty to go take a bite out of Edward but realised that it wouldn't be necessary with Kol here to take action. Jacob would have to wait his turn in line.

Everyone was worried for someone.

It was chaos for a while and it was hard, in the mass of vampires all close together on the other side of the house, to tell who was doing what.

When Bella looked up and saw them all against each other, talking, yelling, pushing, pulling, growling...She wondered if they truly could do anything like this, while being this close to each others. Wouldn't it be easier for some of them to step back and let just a couple of them handle things? Did they really all have to jump in the fight at the same time? She knew that Kol couldn't be killed this easily but still... What did Cold One venom do on an Original Vampire? She didn't know and she knew that neither did Kol, she would have seen it in one of her dreams otherwise, she was sure of it.

Alice was yelling at Jasper for not supporting her, she was breaking up with him, telling him awful things and insulting his manhood. She was making everyone wonder what he had ever seen in her and if she had been bewitching them all from the beginning. The expression on her face used to be cheerful, joyous and caring but it was now only hatred, disdain, disgust and anger. She looked like another person completely.

Edward was trying to break free and Kol was trying not to kill him, which was not easy considering he could still hear that Bella had a hard time calming down, even with Jasper's help. The fact that she wasn't asking him not to kill Edward wasn't helping him either. He knew that if she were fine she would be asking him to spare the Cold one. This didn't help his anger. Her heart was too big for her own good, it was a good thing he was now here to look after her and protect her from people like Edward and Alice.

Esmee was dry sobbing, comforted by Carlisle. She didn't want to loose Bella but she didn't want Edward dead or harmed either, it reminded her of when she lost her son, her baby. She couldn't lose Edward, he had to get better. Everyone felt for her.

Rosalie was yelling at Alice and Edward with Emmett trying to hold her back but finding it hard since he, too, wanted to snap some necks... Well, only two necks really.

Finn was trying to help his brothers the best way he could, all the while keeping an eye on Sage and Bella in the back, happy that Elijah was still standing in front of the two humans, ready to defend them if anything happened.

.

During all the chaos and the confusion, Jasper didn't care that much when Alice broke things off with him and insulted him. He was too busy looking at the pretty Original sister Rebekah.

He remembered her from his human days.

The first time he saw her was when he had gone to sign up to join the army, lying about his age. He had been walking down the street heading to the office and crossed paths with her as she came the other way. She had been walking with Klaus, had smiled at him sweetly and he had immediately fallen in love with her.

It had been love at first sight for him and she probably hadn't even seen him.

He remembered thinking that she couldn't be human, that such beauty couldn't exist in a human and that she had to be supernatural. He remembered thinking that she was like an angel with her beautiful blond wavy hair and her bright smile. She was even prettier today and he knew that Alice had never been his mate. Maybe Rebekah wasn't his either but she would at least threat him better than Alice ever did. If Rebekah wasn't his true Love, she was very close to being it, he could feel it.

.

Rebekah had noticed Jasper from the moment he had arrived in front of Bella's house earlier and had been frustrated when he never met her eyes. Once upon a time she had crossed his path. He was human at the time and she remembered being attracted to him immediately but thinking that he would be better off without her in his life.

She was wondering if he remembered her when the chaos happened and she could feel his eyes on her. Maybe he had noticed her after all, maybe it was time for her to find Love too and be happy.

Even if he was a Cold One, being with him wouldn't be so bad. plus, she knew of a way to transform him from a Cold one into an Original like them.

.

Slowly, everything became silent and everyone was pretty much calm.

Edward was still complaining but at least nobody was yelling anymore.

"You can't leave me Bella, you'll die without me. Do I need to remind you that Victoria is creating a newborn army to kill you? She'll take things slow and make you suffer, you know she will, she's twisted that way. Remember all your nightmares Bella, keep her face in mind. She'll tear you apart..." Edward said, knowing how truly terrified of Victoria Bella was.

He knew that by telling her this he was going to bring back nightmares during the night. He knew she would dream of Victoria and of the Volturi. He didn't want her to be able to sleep well without him present, he wanted to control her and everything about her.

"We can handle this Victoria on our own boy. We're much stronger than she is and we have powerful allies." Klaus growled, defensive of the little sister he had just gained.

"So does she, you'll see. You'll all die and then Victoria will kill Bella and you'll all regret not leaving her with me." Edward replied calmly.

"Given the situation, I think it would be best if the family and I left... maybe going to Denali for a while would help Alice and Edward deal with things..." Carlisle decided.

"It's not like they need to graduate anyway... They already did enough time." Esmee agreed.

"People are gonna talk..." Emmett realised.

"I could spread the word that a family relative of yours died and that you had to go take care of things." Charlie suggested.

"Thank you Charlie." Carlisle agreed.

"I... I'm not leaving. I'm staying." Jasper decided.

"What?" Emmett asked.

"Why?" Esmee asked.

"I knew it." Rosalie smiled.

She had caught the stares between Rebekah and Jasper and she knew that something was happening between them.

"What about Alice?" Carlisle asked.

"Alice just insulted me and broke things off... I think she was always manipulating me anyway... We were never meant to be together... I also want to help protect Bella against the Newborn Army. I know how they work, I can help them." Jasper said in his best Major voice.

"Oh please, that's rubbish! We both know you're only staying for this blond original trash." Alice spat.

"Hey! Watch how you speak of my sister Pixie!" Elijah protested, breaking out of his cool facade to defend his sister.

"Don't worry big brother, insults from her don't touch me... Plus, you know what they say... _It takes one to know one_." Rebekah replied, not even looking at the pixie girl as she glared even harder her way.

She had just been confirmed that Jasper wanted to spend more time with her, she couldn't be any happier. Even if they weren't true mates, they would get along well and have a few happy moments together, maybe even forever.

.

They stayed a little while longer to discuss things with Jasper staying behind but Bella was exhausted from the day's events and all the emotions she had been forced to go through. Edward was also getting hard to contain and if he didn't yell or say much of anything anymore, it was obvious that he was still trying to break free and that he was having a silent conversation with Alice.

To make sure he didn't run after Bella again, even if he now looked calmer, Klaus and Elijah managed to convince Carlisle to reap Edward's legs away until they reached Denali and he started accepting things.

"Why can't you compel him to stay behind and leave me alone?" Bella asked in a small voice, shyly.

"Our compulsion power only work on Cold Ones who don't have a power... We don't know why..." Klaus replied with a soft smile.

Kol took Bella in his arms when he saw her yawn one more time and he carried her to the car while Emmett kept Edward in place. He knew that his family and Charlie was following him.

"I can walk you know. I'm not so tired that I have to be carried around..." Bella said with a blush on her cheeks.

"Does it bother you?" Kol asked her softly, fearing that she'd rather be away from him.

Bella of course saw the hesitation in his eyes and she knew that he feared he was going too fast so she reassured him:

"Not at all... I like it." She answered in a barely audible voice.

"Good, because after what just happened I like having you in my arms. I know that nobody will be able to take you away from me then." He replied with a cocky smile that erased Bella's uneasiness.

She couldn't help but feel comfortable around him and so she put her head on his shoulder, showing him that she wasn't ready to leave his arms anytime soon. She felt safe there, at home.

.

Edward seemed, on the surface, to start accepting that he would never have Bella again and that he needed to deal with this but they all supposed that it was so he could have his legs back sooner rather than later. Even if he knew he would heal, it still hurt a lot and the healing would hurt too.

On the inside, Edward was plotting a revenge of his own with Alice shall Victoria fail to do what she started. He was now praying for Victoria to manage killing Bella and everyone she cared about. It never crossed Edward's mind that if Victoria wanted to kill Bella it was his fault, that if he wasn't with Bella anymore, Victoria would go after him. He knew that Victoria wouldn't know about their separation before it was too late.

After all, Bella had betrayed him and he stood by his word, if he couldn't have her, then nobody ever could. Who was she to think she could leave him behind? He was an extraordinary Cold One, one of the best, he thought, and he wasn't about to let a simple weak and clumsy human decide on his fate.

His eyes crossed Alice's for half a second and they smiled softly at each other. Together, they were unstoppable. If they couldn't see the Originals with their powers, it didn't matter, they would find a way around it. They would win.

Like Edward once told Bella: _**"Never bet against Alice."**_

* * *

**So?**

**Will YOU be brave enough to bet against Alice on this or not?**

**Thank you so much for loving this story so much and reviewing this much! You reviews are getting bigger and I LOVE IT! You readers are the best!**

**The story has grown bigger! It's up to 15 chapters now and not over yet.**

**Review!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	7. Chapter 7

_**Bella's Choice**_

_**7**_

* * *

Bella was in the same car as before. Kol had kept her on his lap, unwilling to let her go after having such a fright, and Charlie was beside them on the back seat. Elijah was still driving and Rebekah had gone in the other car. Klaus was with them this time, in the passenger seat. Bella acted as if she didn't realise what they were doing but she knew that it was in case Edward or Alice attacked them again. They wanted Klaus with them so they could be best protected. Even if she hated people putting them in danger for her own safety, she knew that in this car, in case of an attack, the only ones in danger were her father and herself, so she was glad they were here to prevent any tragic end to this busy day. She was planning on asking her father to spend as much time as possible on the reservation anyway. There he would be protected by the wolves.

"Where are you all staying then?" Charlie asked them while Elijah drove according to the speed limit.

Bella was so deep in her thoughts that she hadn't realised that her father had been talking with Elijah ever since they had started the car. Kol's lap was way too comfortable and it was easy for her to loose herself in it.

"We figured that we'd stay at the motel for a while... It's not much but with the short time we had to plan, we couldn't find a house to buy or rent around here. Kol was in such a hurry to get here it only gave us a day to plan everything." Elijah replied.

"Yeah, there isn't much around that time of the year... In the winter time there are a few places to rent, people that come here only for the summer and go back in the south for the cold days but those places aren't for rent around this time of the year. I don't like you staying at the motel though, it's not the best thing... Ever since the owners got divorced 2 years ago the place has been falling appart... It's like the place has seen a war or something. You should stay with us. We have a spare room, the couch flips into a bed and I'm sure Bella wouldn't mind sharing with Rebekah." Charlie suggested.

The message was pretty clear. He didn't mind them around and was willing to support them and to get to know them but he wasn't ready to see Bella and Kol spending the night together, not so soon.

"Rebekah will love that." Klaus commented.

He knew that his little sister was dying to finally have a true friend and she saw in Bella the occasion to finally bond with a girl that would stay in her life forever.

"Thank you, that's very generous of you Chief Swan." Elijah replied, accepting the offer on behalf of his family.

"Oh, go ahead and call me Charlie. I have a feeling we're going to see a lot of each other from now on, might as well be on first name basis. We're almost family now anyway..." The man replied.

Klaus was about to say something when he was interrupted by Bella's rumbling stomach. Knowing that everyone, even her father, had heard it, she blushed deeply and tried to hide her face in Kol's happy chest. The youngest Mickealson male chuckled and tightenend a bit his hold on her, happy to have her this close to him after what had happened. He felt as if he had known her for years instead of hours, and, in a way, he had. He felt like they had known each other since the begining of time and would stay linked, no matter what, until the end of times.

"I think I'll spare you the cooking tonight Bella, we'll just order a couple of pizza or something." Charlie chuckled before looking to the front seat and Klaus and Elijah and asking "You guys like Pizza right?" He wasn't sure if Bella told him that they also ate or if they only drank blood.

The details of the supernatural were still a bit blurry for him. It was all too new.

"Sure we do. Only Cold ones are too limited to eat and drink only blood. **We**, however, love food." Klaus replied.

"That will give Bella a well deserved break from cooking and it will be there fast if I'm the one ordering." Charlie said as Elijah parked the car next to the cruiser and close to Sage's car.

"The perks of being Chief of Police in a small town I assume?" Klaus asked kindly.

"Exactly." The police officer nodded as everyone got out of the cars.

"Right... What dad is not telling you is that his Chief title has nothing to do with the fast delieveries from the local pizzeria, nor has his fidelity to the place... He only gets priority because the widow that runs the place has a major crush on dad." Bella replied, making her father blush.

"Bella, she's something like 50!" Charlie complained.

"So? It doesn't stop her from thinking you're to her taste does it?" Bella replied.

"I take it you're not a fan of the lady then?" Klaus asked.

"She's very nice and a good friend but nothing more... She's not my kind of woman...even if she was a bit younger..." He replied, embarrassed.

"Yeah well, what is your type of woman I wonder..." Bella muttered under her breath.

Her father chose to ignore her and act as if he hadn't heard a thing.

"You don't cook then?" Elijah asked Charlie to spare the man and change the subject.

"No, not really..." Charlie replied with a blush that could rival his daughter's.

Bella chuckled.

"Dad could burn water. He's a real danger in a kitchen... Sometimes I wonder how he didn't blow up the house when I lived with Renee." Bella explained.

"I did go through a few microwaves... I don't know what I'm doing wrong, those things just keep on breaking down on me... Good thing we have deliveries in Forks too." Charlie complained, making everyone chuckle.

.

"So that's the truck you love so much..." Kol asked Bella with a slight frown as they walked in front of her beloved red truck.

"Yes...Why?" She asked.

Everyone was around them, waiting to know what was going on now before going in.

"Well, for once I have to agree with Edward... I know it's the kind of car that could survive any run in with another car but it looks like it could also break down in the middle of the road anytime..." Kol explained his point of view.

"And how would you know brother? You spent the last century in a box. You can't know that much about cars. You weren't even around when they started selling them to the public." Klaus said, making Bella smile at him in thanks.

She felt that Klaus would be the big brother she kept asking her mother for when she was a kid but never got the chance to have. She could feel a bond forming between her and all of Kol's family but beside the one with Hol, it was the strongest with Klaus, maybe because he needed it more than the others, she thought. Rebekah came in close 3rd though.

"The engine was completely rebuilt by Jacob... The thing runs great." Charlie protested.

"Yeah, rebuilt by the guy that forced a kiss on her and broke her hand... I'm not sure I like it anymore..." Kol replied, glaring at the truck while Bella stood by his side with her hand in his.

"You're just trying to find an excuse to buy her a new car because you want to buy her things and you saw in your _'Bella's life'_ dreams that she was difficult when people tried to buy her expensive things." Rebekah said, rolling her eyes as Charlie chuckled and opened the front door, inviting officially the Original family inside.

Everyone understood that when Rebekah said _'people'_ she really meant the Cullen's and mainly Alice and Edward. They had been the only ones who had tried to force overly expensive things on Bella.

"Talking about my hand, it doesn't hurt anymore... I think that your blood healed it along with the bruises. I'll be able to take that thing off." Bella exclaimed happily, showing her wrapped wrist.

"Good, now let's go in and get you something to eat. You need to rest. We'll talk about me buying you lots of things when you're not so tired and can argue." Kol said, leading her inside softly.

Bella just smiled at him but couldn't help but compare him to Edward who would have used her tired state to argue her into accepting whatever he wanted. Kol was much better than that, more noble. She had known it and he was just proving it to her every chance he got.

"How about you buy yourself a new car and you'll drive me around in it?" She suggested while she showed them all the house.

There wasn't much to see but she wanted them comfortable to move around. Her father was on the phone and after asking everyone what they wanted on their pizza, he was ordering.

"Always the peacemaker... I like it." Kol replied, taking his hand out of hers to put his arm around her waist before dropping a quick kiss on her forehead.

She didn't protest. She just smiled.

.

After giving everyone a tour of the house, it was decided that both Sage and Rebekah would stay with Bella, Finn would sleep in the same room as Charlie, Elijah and Klaus would share the spare bedroom and Kol would sleep on the couch downstairs. Bella knew that everything had been arranged to protect her and Charlie the bast way possible. Finn stayed with Charlie to protect him and Sage was added in her room because they wanted to be sure that she was safe in case both Alice and Edward came together to get her. Kol was downstairs to each Charlie's peace of mind and to keep an eye on the front door. Elijah and Klaus were going to take turn on staying awake and keeping an eye and an ear open around the house.

By the time they all put their bags down, the pizzas they had ordered arrived, hand delivered by an overly flirty own by the way, which amused everyone in the room. Elijah payed before Charlie could take his wallet out and they all settled in the living room, in front of the TV, to eat and talk.

They used this time to get to know each others better.

Bella already knew a lot but she didn't know everything. Charlie seemed to get along very well with Elijah and Bella liked that. She was glad that her father had a vampire friend to protect him in case the wolves failed. She couldn't help it, she was mad at them all because of Jacob and tended to think low of them all at the moment.

They were half way through their meal when the doorbell rang.

"Cold one." Klaus growled after sniffing the air.

"Jasper!" Rebekah squeeled after sniffing it too.

"Well, let him in." Charlie suggested when he saw how much Rebekah seemed to like him.

"Thanks Charlie!" She replied before kissing Charlie on the cheek in thanks and rushing to open the door.

She had been afraid Charlie wouldn't allow Jasper in because of Alice and Edward and was happy when he gave her authorisation to let him in. She opened the door and greeted Japser shyly.

"I can't stay long, I need to hunt tonight. I came to warn you that the Cullen's will all be living in an hour. I'll go with them to escort Edward and Alice up to Denali and then I'll come back to help protect Bella and this town against Victoria and her Newborn army. I'll be staying at the Cullen's. Carlisle asked me to tell you that you are welcome to stay in our house if you want but that he'll understand if you were to decide to stay here instead to keep Bella and Charlie protected." Jasper explained kindly.

"No offence mate but I'd rather stay here where I can protect Bella and where it doesn't smell like your brother all over the place." Kol replied.

"None taken. Bella, Rosalie, Emmett, Esmee and Carlisle wanted me to tell you that they will stay in touch." Jasper said to Bella particularily.

"Thanks... I will too." Bella smiled softly.

"Good. Now I have to go, I want to hunt before I have to take them all the way to Alaska." Jasper finished before he gave Rebekah a smile full of hope and told her "We'll need to talk." and was off.

"Well, I guess there will be a lot of talk tomorrow at school... Good thing there is only two days left until graduation." Bella said.

"Did we miss prom?" Rebekah asked.

"Yes, it was last saturday." Bella replied.

"Did you go with Edward?" Kol asked, jealousy in his voice.

"No. He forced me to go last years so I managed to avoid going this year." Bella explained.

"Forced you to go?" Charlie asked.

"Yes, I really didn't want to go but he insisted and made it a surprised so I didn't have a choice but to go. He had Alice dress me up and everything... I didn't really like it... I don't like dancing and I would have been much happier staying home and reading a book or something..." Bella replied.

"You only don't like dancing because you never danced with me, I'm awesome. You'll see, you'll love it and you won't ever be able to get enough of dancing in my arms." Kol flirted, making her blush and chuckle.

She knew that he was doing this to distract her and it worked. He knew her well. He was perfect for her.

"So Bella, what are your plans for next year?" Sage asked her.

"Well, I got accepted in Dartmouth and in the university of Alaska but I don't really want to go to college just yet... I only applied because Alice convinced me too... At first I was planing on going off to look for Kol but then I met Edward and my dreams of Kol got less frequent... I figured I'd go with the flow of things... But a few weeks ago, when Edward started saying that he'd only change me if I married him first and got in college with him I figured I'd accept..." Bella replied.

"You wanted to be a Cold one?" Elijah asked, surprised.

"You love him so much that you'd want forever with him?" Finn asked while Kol looked down.

"Of course not." Bella replied immediately, making Kol look up when she continued: "I didn't really want to change to be with Edward... As soon as he asked me, I started getting dreams of Kol again and I figured that I couldn't do much against Klaus if I was human so I was planning on changing to be stronger and more capable of fighting Klaus to get Kol back... I know that Rebekah knows of a way for Cold ones to become Originals anyway so it wouldn't have been permanent." Bella explained, surprising everyone.

"That's some pretty good planning..." Elijah commented.

"You would have fought me to get him back?" Klaus asked, surprised that after knowing about him she would have been brave enough to fight him.

"Well, I would have asked nicely first. Attacking you immediately would have been just wrong. I would have introduced myself and explained what I wanted...and prayed that you were kinder than you seemed to be." Bella replied.

"Isn't she the best?" Kol exclaimed, enamored.

"The worst part is that she probably would have gotten it... The link she has with Kol extends to me... I feel it, she's our sister..." Klaus said.

"Yes, I feel it too." Rebekah added as her other brothers nodded.

"Don't you usually dagger your family members?" Bella asked Klaus with an amused smile.

"You might have been capable of convincing me to undagger them all..." Klaus said before he added "I was going to do it as soon as our mother's coffin was secure anyway..."

.

"I think I'm going to go to bed now... This day has exhausted me...too many emotions I think." Bella said after another hour of talking with everyone about divers things.

"You get some rest Bella, you've got school tomorrow after all." Kol said as he hugged her to his side and kissed her forehead protectively.

They had prepared earlier the beds for Sage and Rebekah so everything was ready.

"Good night everyone." Bella said, waving at the entire room.

"Goodnight." They replied.

"And don't worry about tomorrow Bella, I'll drive you to school and pick you up. One of us will hang around the school the entire day to keep you safe." Kol told her.

"You're going to drive the Chief of Police's daughter to school when you don't have your license?" Bella asked him, laughter in her eyes.

"I think I can make an exception just this once. Something tells me that he already knows how to drive." Charlie replied.

"I'm just that good! I learn fast." Kol added with a flirty wink in Bella's direction.

.

Charlie waited until Bella had left the bathroom and gone back into her room to ask the question he was dying to ask:

"So, what is going on with this Victoria? I know that she's after Bells but what is this army of hers? What are we going to do?" He asked them, very serious and all traces of laughter gone from his face.

"I'll go upstairs and keep an eye on Bella. I'll hear everything anyway..." Rebekah announced, going up the stairs to get ready for bed and be present in case anything happened to Bella.

"What did Bella tell you about all this?" Kol asked him, just as seriously.

The atmosphere in the room had changed completely.

"She told me why this Victoria was after her but that's it. Billy told me that the wolves were failing at catching her. They don't know anything about an army." Charlie replied.

"This crazy bitch is going for the '_a mate for a mate_' thing. Since James was killed while trying to kill Bella, I don't think telling her that Edward left and that things broke off with Bella would change anything. She'll still want Bella dead." Elijah explained.

"Okay...and what is this army of hers? I'm guessing that Newborns aren't actual babies is it? I mean, she didn't change a bunch of babies right?" Charlie asked, an apprehensive look on his face.

The Originals chuckled.

"No, not at all. Cold Ones are at their strongest when they're in the first year of their life. That's what we called Newborns. A while back, in the south, they used Newborns army to war for territories... A Newborn army doesn't need thousand of people like a human army. They only need 20 people and no human army would be able to stop them. It takes a lot to manage them... that's why it's good that Jasper is coming back for us, he was created for one of those armies a long time ago and only managed to escape because of his gifts. Usually, Cold Ones don't live longer than a year in an army." Kol explained.

"How do you know that? You didn't seem to know the Cullen's..." Charlie asked.

"I don't but I've heard of Jasper...he was known as Major Jasper Whitlock back then and was very famous in that area. I was in the south looking for Katerina for Klaus... She's..." Kol started but Charlie cut him off.

"Yeah, I know, she's a double of a girl from your past that betrayed Klaus. Bella told me that part." Charlie said.

"They're the ones behind all the murders and disappearances in Seattle." Elijah stated.

"Do we know how many Newborn she's created?" Sage asked.

"I don't think so and without Alice's power, we won't be able to..." Kol replied.

"Maybe we can estimate... Charlie, can you find exactly how many people have gone missing lately? Along with how many people where killed?" Elijah asked.

"Sure I can but how will you be able to tell from the normal disappearances and the supernatural ones?" He asked.

"Seattle's crime rate is pretty stable so we'll be able to have a pretty accurate estimation." Klaus replied.

"What about your hybrids in Seattle, did they tell you anything?" Finn asked his brother.

"They have never encountered Cold Ones before and apparently, the red haired bitch keeps them pretty much in line." Klaus replied.

"Won't she need someone from around here if she wants to sneak in? I mean, Billy told me that the first time the wolves crossed her she didn't seem to know the place very well and now she acts like she knows every tree... She seems to know every details about this place..." Charlie informed them.

"It could be, but it could also be that she was around a long time and got to know the place..." Elijah replied, not willing to Kill Charlie's hopes but knowing it was necessary.

"Except that she was never around for more than a few minutes... She runs through to test the defenses and leaves... And no matter how hard you study the maps, you can't know as much as she knows without having spent years walking through here..." Charlie replied.

"What do you have in mind Charlie?" Sage asked the Chief of Police kindly.

"I just looked through it today now that I have most of the facts... A little after Bella came back from Phoenix hurt last year, a couple from around here came to the station to report their son was missing. Since the boy was studying in Seattle, I couldn't file the report so they went to Seattle to do it. It was right before all the murders and dissapearences started. Of course it's a big city and the police over there didn't find anything. It just came to me today after I left Billy's... That boy, Riley Pierce, knows this place a lot... He hiked and hunted a lot in those woods with his father. He basically spent his entire childhood around here hiking when he wasn't at school. Bella told me that Alice couldn't see much about the army and that she couldn't see anything about Victoria's actions... What if this Victoria changed Riley so that he could do the decision making? This way Victoria can stay out of Alice's vision reach right?" Charlie asked, eager for some answers.

"That's actually not bad thinking at all Charlie... She could be doing that..." Elijah said thoughtfully as the other nodded.

"Isn't there anyone else that could give us some answers?" Finn asked.

"Actually, I have a witch that owes me a favor not far from here. Since it's a favor that will save a lot of human lives she'll be willing to help me. I'll call her tomorrow and see if she can get us some answers." Elijah announced.

"Will we be enough to handle them, keep them from going in town and protect Bella and Charlie?" Sage wondered.

"Well, I'll call in my hybrids to help, we'll have the Major and we can always ask for the Quileuts to help. I'm sure that they won't want to just stand by when so many of their enemies come and invade their town." Klaus replied.

"True." Kol said.

"I'll give Billy a call tomorrow morning." Charlie announced while nodding.

"It might be better if we met him..." Elijah suggested.

"Sure, I'll take you there tomorrow before I head to work." Charlie agreed.

They talked some more for a couple of hours before they all went to bed. The next day was going to be a big one and they all needed to be fully rested in case there was an early fight.

.

After he settled in his bed, Charlie felt better than when he woke up that morning. He had been afraid of loosing his only child but now he knew that his daughter would be safe. Somehow, he had been accepted into this big family of vampires and they would all be safe.

.

In Mystic Fall's, Caroline had explained to Elena and her Salvatore boyfriends that the Originals were gone for now, then she called Tyler and told him that it was safe to come back since Klaus was gone and promised not to use the sire bond anymore, he had released him. Of course he didn't answer and instead he left her another voice mail later (when he knew she wouldn't be able to answer because she was in class), telling her that he wasn't ready to come back, that he had to break the sire bond on his own. She was ready to accept it when she decided to listen to it again.

The second time around, she concentrated, looking for a clue as to where Tyler was so she could surprise him there and she heard a faint feminine voice in the back ground:

"Come on Tyler, the bed is getting cold without you in it and I miss you in me..."

Then, just as Caroline's heart was breaking, she heard Tyler say in a louder voice:

"So, yeah, Like I said, I'm working hard on breaking it...the sire bond I mean...gotta go. Call you back later babe."

Caroline had never felt so betrayed in her entire life. She tried calling back Tyler and without any surprises he didn't answer. She decided to leave him a voice mail of her own.

"Hey Tyler, it's me again. I heard your message. Wanna know what else I've heard? Your little whore talking in the back ground. I trusted you and you really hurt me. I actually thought you deserved to be trusted, I was willing to fight for you, for us. You've really hurt me. A lot. How could you do this? You say you're going away after almost killing me because you want to train to be stronger and you end up cheating on me? -BIP"

The allowed time for a message was passed but she wasn't done talking so she called again and left another one. The first message had started out angry and finished with her in tears. This time, she was crying the entire time:

"Me again, the girl you cowardly bit and left dying before going away, pretending it was for me when you actually were going to cheat on me. Did you know that my father died? It's your fault you know. He died trying to help you. You killed him. You killed my father and left me. You broke my heart too. Who is this bitch? What does she have that I don't? How could you do this to me Tyler? I was falling for you... I was so involved in this...-BIP"

"Damn it." Caroline cursed before she dried her tears and called again.

She was back to being angry and it would be heard in the tone she used.

"Surprise, me again. I wasn't done talking you little bastard. I'll never forgive you for making me cry. Did you know that Klaus flirted with me? He invited me to a ball and everything. I resisted his charm out of loyalty to you. I felt something for him but because we were together I resisted... But he loves me, he said so. It's because he loves me that he broke your sire bond. And you broke my heart. You made me cry... I hate crying and I...-BIP"

She dialed the same number again. This time, she wasn't crying at all. She was full of anger and ready to let it out. She vaguely wondered if she had already gone through the right stages of grief in such a short time or if it will come back again. She knew that the first one was denial, she hadn't voice this one but had been through it in her head before calling Tyler, wondering if it was all a mistake. Then came grief, and anger. She definitely knew these ones and had voiced them already. She was still stuck in the "anger" stage of grief... What came next again? Bargaining? she refused to let herself fall this low with him. No, she wouldn't be bargaining anything with Tyler anymore. What next? Acceptence? Yeah, she wasn't ready for this yet.

"I hate you, Okay? I fucking hate you for hurting me this way! This whory bitch better be good in bed because you won't find anyone else to sleep with you around here, I'll make sure of it. I'll also be talking with your mother, I think she has a right to know what kind of man she's been raising... Seriously, did you have to leave for this? Just stay away from me and from Mystic Fall's, I don't want to see you ever again. Tell your bitch that she...-BIP"

"Caroline again, finishing what I have to tell you. You can tell your evil little bitch that if she ever comes near me, my town or my friends I will end her. And you. I will end you both. I truly hope she was worth it because you just lost everything you had going in this town... and it was good." She finished before she hung up much calmer.

"Damn it, I forgot to say something..." She muttered before she called Tyler's number again:

"By the way, in case you didn't get it with my previous messages, I just broke up with you. Don't call me ever again, I don't want to hear from you. Come near me and I'll get Klaus to go after you and your bitch. Goodbye Tyler."

When she hung up the phone this time, she was much calmer than she was before.

"You're okay honey?" Liz asked her daughter.

"I... I will be mom." She smiled sadly.

"Do you need anything?" She asked her daughter.

"_Ben and Jerry's_ ice cream and a hug?" Caroline asked with a small, sad smile.

"You've got it honey. I'll be right back."

Caroline didn't really know what the future had in store for her but as she spent the night trying to forget about Tyler, she thought about Klaus and got a feeling that he would be in her future for a; long time. She needed to take time to forget about what Tyler had done to hurt her but she felt that she wouldn't be able to resist Klaus for long now that she didn't have a boyfriend to stay faithful to.

What was Klaus doing right now? Was he thinking about her? Was he coming back to Mystic Fall's at some point? She fell asleep thinking of this and dreamt of Klaus punishing Tyler in funny and humiliating ways for hurting her and making her cry.

* * *

**Biggest chapter so far!**

**So, what did you think of this 7th chapter?**

**A BIG THANK YOU for all the reviews and the love you're giving me and this story, you guys are the best! The story lineis growing too!**

**Review please!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	8. Chapter 8

**_Bella's Choice_**

**_8_**

* * *

The next morning Bella woke up and turned her alarm off before she realised that she wasn't alone in her bedroom and the events of he previous day came rushing back to her.

She hadn't dreamt of Kol last night and it disappointed her.

She had hoped that now that she was in the same place as Kol, they would meet in dreams or something equally magical that could have allowed them both to finally have a private conversation but maybe she had been expecting too much out of their bond.

She vaguely wondered if she talked in her sleep last night... Maybe she should have warned her new room mates.

All she had was a nightmare. Edward didn't want to let her go and had allied himself with Victoria to get revenge on her. She was cornered, alone, being tortured and about to be killed by Edward when Kol saved her. That's when she woke up, right after Kol took her in his arms and told her soothing words to calm her down.

"'Morning Bella." Rebekah said as she rose up from her bed.

"Good morning. Did you sleep well? The floor wasn't too hard, was it?" Bella asked her, looking around for Sage who wasn't in the room.

"Don't worry, I had a good night. I've slept in worst places over the centuries. It's still better than a cave or a coffin with a dagger in your heart." Rebekah replied with a gentle smile.

"I didn't speak too much did I?" Bella asked nervously.

"In your sleep? It would have been good to be warned beforehand. But you didn't speak for long... You seemed scared for a while but then you calmed down." Rebekah replied amused.

"I'm so sorry, I forgot to warn you and Sage about that little detail..." Bella apologized.

"Don't worry about it." Rebekah waved it off as Bella got ready for school.

.

When she got downstairs, Bella saw her father sitting at the table, in deep conversation with Finn while Sage cooked what smelled like a heavenly breakfast for everybody. She was welcomed by Kol who was waiting for her with a glass of orange juice and a plate with belgian waffles.

"Good Morning Bella." he greeted her, looking very excited.

"'Morning Kol... Smells good..." Bella blushed.

"Thanks, I made them just for you." He replied.

"Yeah, and Sage had to cook for the rest of us because Kol cooked only for you two." Finn said, smiling.

"Hey, I'll have you know that I was up early just for this. It's not my fault if I'm thoughful and awesome." Kol joked, winking at Bella before leading her to the living room where he had set a nice little breakfast table for her.

"You didn't have to do this you know..." She said when they sat down.

"I know, but I wanted to. I figured you'd need comfort after that dream..." He explained softly, not joking anymore.

"How do you know?" She asked.

"I was there, remember?"

"I... I thought that it wasn't really you... That it was a dream version of you or something..." She explained.

"I was waiting for you to arrive in a very pretty meadow of flowers but you didn't come and I knew that you were asleep so I went to look for you and I eventually found you with Edward and Victoria... Unfortunately, after that we didn't have much room for talking..." He told her.

"Does it mean that we'll always be in each other's dreams from now on?" She asked him as she took a bite of the waffles he had made just for her.

"I don't really know... Probably... Time will tell I guess. I sure hope so though." He replied.

"It's really good by the way."

"Thank you. Now come on, finish your breakfast and I'll drive you to school. The cars Elijah rented are pretty fast so you won't be late." Kol replied.

.

As he watched his young Love eating the breakfast he had made just for her, Kol thought back to the dream they had shared the previous night.

_- FLASHBACK to the dream: -_

Kol was standing in a heaven like meadow. He could hear birds singing and a river nearby. Pretty flowers were all over the place, spreading their wonderful perfume all around him. At some point, a deer ran past him to drink in the river and ran away again when a fish jumped out of the water.

It was peaceful and romantic.

Almost heaven like.

Somehow, he knew that it had something to do with Bella. It was probably another one of her memories, or maybe they would even be able to talk in here.

Kol waited for a long time but Bella never came. Instinctively, he knew that it meant that something had gone very wrong and that he needed to find her. If something terrible happened to her during one of those dreams, would it affect her in the real world? He didn't know the answer to that question but he didn't want to test it.

He looked all over the place, even if he didn't know it. His senses where all awake and he tried to see if he could smell her, hear her or see her somewhere.

Finally, he closed his eyes and let his heart guide him. He could feel a pull in one direction so he followed it and ended up finding his lovely Bella on the dirty ground, crying. A red haired female Cold one Kol supposed was Victoria stood over her and was cutting her skin deeply with her nails while Edward took pleasure in breaking her bones one by one, telling her that this was revenge for breaking up with him, that she deserved it and was a very bad person.

"Bella!" Kol exclaimed as soon as he saw her.

He ran as fast as he could to her and jumped on Edward, ripping him away from her, glad that this was not another of those _'spectator dreams'_ where he couldn't interact because running through Edward this time would have sucked. Hitting Edward in this dream was very satisfactory for Kol. After disposing of Edward, he took care of Victoria who started drinking from his yelling Bella. Angrier than he had been in his entire life, Kol killed the red haired woman and ripped to pieces before he rushed to his loved one and let her drink from him, making sure that she was healing and that she had no venom left in her.

Bella was healing thanks to his blood but she was still crying and very upset and he hated seeing her like this. He tried to sooth her, to calm her down the best way he could...

"It's okay Bella, I promise you, I won't let anything happen to you, ever. This isn't real, it's a dream honey. You're safe, you'll always be safe. I'll never leave you, I'll always protect you... I love you Bella, I won't let anything happen to you..." He said in her hear in his best soothing voice.

"Thank you...for being here and... I..." Bella started to say after she calmed down.

She was interrupted by a loud and annoying ringing. It was her alarm.

It woke the both of them up.

_- End of flashback-_

Kol had then decided to try and rise her mood by preparing her a good breakfast and he was happy to see that she liked it. Her smiling at him was all the reward he needed and he was glad that he had thought of preparing the dough for the waffles the previous night. .

.

When it was time for Bella to go to school, Kol drove her. He was thinking of hanging around the place to keep her safe and his sister decided to go with him, depriving him of some alone time with Bella. Jasper wasn't back yet and Rebekah needed something to keep her busy, she decided that she might as weel help keep busy her new sister, the girl who was keeping her family intact.

When Bella arrived in school, it was incredibly hard for her to let go of Kol and she was glad to hear him say that he would stick around all day to make sure she was safe. She knew that the day wouldn't be easy because of the Cullen's not being there on a day that wasn't sunny and so close to graduation but she hoped they would leave her alone.

"Bella, hey! How come you're alone this morning?" Mike asked her as he came to greet her with Eric, Ben, Angela and Jessica.

"Yeah, where are Edward and Alice? It's so rare to see you without them..." Jessica added.

"Oh...A close relative of the Cullen's passed away and they had to go back to Alaska for the ceremony and to take care of everything..." Bella lied incredibly easily.

"Why didn't you go with them?" Jessica asked her, her jealous piercing eyes not leaving her.

"Charlie wouldn't let me." Bella replied with a smile.

It wasn't completely a lie, she thought. Charlie would have never let her go with them had it been real, even before he learned that they were Cold Ones.

"But you're so close to them..." Angela argued and Bella knew that they wouldn't leave it alone until they knew at least part of the truth, until they were convinced by her story.

"The truth is that I had a fight with Edward and I broke up with him. I'm still in contact with the others but not with Edward and Alice anymore... I didn't really feel like spending anymore time with them, it was too much." She replied.

"Really? What happened for you to break up with him?" Mike asked, too interested in Bella and Jessica's taste.

"Did he cheat on you with Lauren?" Jessica asked, making Bella wonder if her _'friend'_ had a particular reason for asking this specific question but she brushed it off, refusing to think about this any more.

"Well, he was a bit abusive...he and Alice always had to get their ways and he insisted that I had to get married to him right after graduation... I think he's got a bit of a mental problem that hasn't been diagnosed if you ask me..." She replied quickly before hurrying to class, knowing that her answer made Kol smile, wherever he was.

"So, Bella, I was thinking, maybe you and I could go out sometimes..." Mike asked Bella a little later when they entered the classroom.

He had ran to catch up with her and Bella had been hoping that he would fall over or that something or someone would stop him on the way but apparently she couldn't have such luck.

"I can't Mike." Bella replied.

"I didn't even give you a date yet, how do you know that you can't?" He asked her with an overly flirty smile.

Bella, tired of having to tell him the same thing over and over again decided to be frank for once and tell him the truth:

"I don't see you that way Mike. I'm sorry. I don't want to go an any dates with you. We're friends, nothing more" As Mike's face fell, Jessica, who was right behind them, smiled thankfully, happy that Bella didn't take away the only boy she had ever really wanted.

His face fell and she felt sorry but there was no easy way to say "_I don't like you and see you more like a Labrador always following me around rather than like a friend. You sometimes even freak me out a little, please leave me alone."_. She knew that she had hurt him, but she thought that she had chosen pretty soft words, considering what she could have chosen to tell him instead.

The fact that the Cullen weren't in school was around pretty quickly but Bella was relieved that people didn't bother her so much about it. She suspected that Kol had gotten around the school to compel a few people, probably even Mike. Indeed, the young man had been pretty mad at her after she told him why she couldn't go out with him and after his trip to the bathroom, he was suddenly her cheerful friend again and had completely stopped his flirting. She just knew that Kol had been behind this and it made her smile.

When it was time for Bella to make her way to the cafeteria for lunch, she felt something vibrate in her jacket pocket and curiously looked inside to find a brand new cell phone with Kol's picture as a screensaver.

It made her smile.

He must have put it in while he hug her goodbye this morning. She answered:

"Hello?"

"If you want you can join me in my car for lunch, I got us sandwiches and salads." Kol's voice said on the other end.

"Really? I'll be right there!" Bella exclaimed happily.

"Excuse me but you got us? I actually am the one who ran to get us all lunch while you compelled Labrador lover boy!" Rebekah's voice protested, making Bella smile.

"I'll be right there." She said.

"Don't fall over on the way!" Kol warned her with a smile that could be heard over the phone.

Bella smiled softly at the fact that he knew her that well already and hurried to join him and Rebekah.

.

While Bella was at school, Charlie called the station to warn that he would come in late because he was called into the reservation and he drove Elijah and Klaus to La Push to meet with Billy and Sam before he had to come in the office. He knew that his deputy would manage to hold the office for a couple of hours. Nothing big ever happened in this town after all and when it did, it was never in the middle of the week.

As soon as Charlie parked his cruiser in Billy's driveway, his friend got out on the front porch to greet him. He had Sue and old Quill on each sides of him, along with Sam, Jacob, Paul and Leah, ready to jump in a fight if necessary.

"Charlie, welcome. I suppose these are the Original vampires you told us about?" Billy started with a friendly smile for his oldest friend outside the reservation.

"Yes, this is Elijah, the oldest of the family actually residing in my house and Klaus, the hybrid. He's half werewolf and half vampire. The others were busy and I figured it would go better if they didn't all come at the same time." Charlie replied.

"They don't stink!" Jacob exclaimed, making Klaus chuckle.

"That's because we are nothing like the Cold Ones. We're stronger and closer to our humanity, even if it's easy for us to turn it off..."Elijah replied, smiling kindly.

"Well, I'm sure you won't get offended if I don't invite you in my home right away..." Billy said.

"Not at all, we understand completely." Elijah replied kindly.

Since he was the oldest of his family, they had all decided that he would be the official spokesperson in official meetings like this one. Slowly, they all settled around the front porch of Billy's house. After introductions where officially made, Elijah decided to sum up the situation:

"As it turns out, Edward didn't take very well the fact that our little brother Kol was Bella's soul mate. He tried to take her away and to kill her. Right now he's in Alaska with the rest of his family, we're hoping that Carlisle's care will help him and Alice getting over their weird obsession with Bella. Jasper however is coming back..." Elijah started.

"Which one is Jasper again?" Paul cut him off:

"The blond male." Klaus replied, making Paul nod.

"The one who always looks in pain..." Jacob muttered.

"Jasper is coming back to help us take care of Victoria's army. I don't know if you're aware but the red haired Cold One you're looking for created an army of New Borns of her race. Very strong creatures with only one goal: find Bella and kill her. They will not stop when they find Bella however. They won't be able to. They'll go in town and if we don't stop them it will be a massacre. My family and I will stand against them, so will a few of Klaus' hybrids that are on their way. A witch I know is actually looking for an exact time and place. We were wondering if you'd be willing to help us make sure none of them escaped." Elijah finished.

"You're asking for our help?" Sam asked.

"We're much stronger than Cold Ones, but we don't know how many of them she created and your presence will help us make sure the town is safe. We all know that even if only one escapes, the consequences could be horrible..." Elijah nodded, confirming what Sam had guessed.

"Well, at least we'll be able to kill some Cold Ones." Jacob cheered.

"A word Jacob before I have to get to work. If you ever kiss Bella against her will again and make her feel helpless and defenseless like you did, I will throw you in jail for assault." Charlie said in a serious cop face he had never shown his friend's son before.

"What? But you were fine with it..." Jacob protested.

"I was fine with it back when I thought it was an innocent kiss from a kid to my grown daughter. I didn't know that you were much stronger than she was and that you held her against her will in this kiss. It was wrong boy and I won't have it. Don't think her soul mate Kol will let it stand either. You've been warned." Charlie finished before he said goodbye to everyone and went to work, leaving Klaus and Elijah to sort things out with the wolves concerning training and the battle.

After Charlie left, everybody looked at Jacob and Sam said:

" I told you what I thought about this... You need to stop with this obsession you have with Bella. You also need to apologize for what you did. Now, let's talk fighting this red haired bitch." Sam finished by looking at Elijah and Klaus.

The elders decided it was time for them to leave and they went back inside while the two vampires followed the wolves to Sam's house to speak with everyone at once and get to know each other better.

The entire time, Elijah felt the female shapeshifter's eyes on him but as soon as he looked at her, her eyes would shift to the side. He didn't know what was going on but she intrigued him and he wanted to know more about her.

"Sam, you don't really need me so I'll go and join my brother on Patrol." Leah informed her Alpha before she took on running towards the woods as if she had fire following her without waiting for any approval of any kind from her Alpha.

"Man, when will she finally get over it.." Paul complained as Sam nodded at Leah's back, giving her permission to leave, even too late.

Sam felt bad for her, he felt her pain and he knew it was his fault. He felt guilty.

"Forget it Paul, don't mention it to her either. You can't understand." Sam barked to Paul before he lead the way to his house.

Elijah decided that he wanted to know what this was about. He would start by asking politely and if he didn't get an answer, he might try to compel a member of the tribe to inform him about it. He had to know Leah's history.

.

When the last bell of the day rang, letting the high school student know that the day of class was over and that they were just that much closer to the deliverance of summer vacation, Bella jumped in joy as she rushed to join Kol in his car. She was pleased to notice that this time Rebekah wasn't there with Kol. They would finally have a moment alone, something that didn't happen since they were together in her dream and then she had been too upset to realise that he was really here.

"We're alone for once, Rebekah has been on the phone with Jasper all afternoon. He's on his way back and I won't be surprised if she ended up spending the night over at his place." Kol said to greet his Love.

"I'm glad... Are we going home or do you have other plans?" She asked him.

"I was thinking that we could go find a quiet place to talk and be a little alone... If we go back home we won't be alone..." He replied.

"You're right. Any place in mind?" She asked him.

"I think so. Come, I promise I won't make you hike for hours first." Kol smirked while Bella sat on the passenger seat of the car.

"I got you a snack. I figured that you might be a bit hungry..." He told her.

"Thank you." She replied as he started the car and drove to the entrance of a little dirt road in the woods.

He followed the dirty road for a while and stopped when he saw what he was looking for on his right. He helped Bella out of the car and lead her into the woods. They walked for only 10 minutes on a flat surface before they entered the meadow that they had dreamed about the previous night.

"You found it!" Bella exclaimed in joy.

"Of course, it wasn't that hard once I remembered the way I took to leave it in our dream." He replied as he laid on the ground a small blanket and helped her sit down.

Bella had to admit that this meadow was much prettier than the one Edward had shown her.

"I'm really happy that you're here Kol, I hope you know that." Bella told him immediately, afraid that her nerves would make her keep the words inside if she waited.

"I'm happy we're finally reunited too... You have no idea how nervous I was when I woke up and realised you were so far away..." Kol replied.

"I don't think you could have been as nervous as I was... I was afraid Edward would get in the way, that Alice would see my decision and rat me out, that Klaus would kill me before I got to you or even that Victoria would find me and kill me before I could even think about leaving to find you..." Bella explained.

"Well, we're together now, Edward and Alice are far away and Victoria is soon to be history. We can be together now... if that's what you want of course..." He replied.

"Of course that's what I want!" Bella exclaimed, a bright happy smile on her face.

"Are you sure? Because once we start our relationship, there will be no turning back... I want you to be sure about this... I don't mind waiting if you're not sure about it..." Kol asked her, wanted for her to be sure about everything.

"I'm sure. I feel like we've been waiting centuries to finally be together..." Bella replied, looking Kol in the eyes.

"It was the case for me." He added, getting closer to her until, finally, their lips joined to create their first kiss.

It was everything Bella had hoped it would be and more. It was magical, sensible, romantic and possessive. In this kiss, they belonged to one another. It was a promise for the future, a promise that said that no matter what got in their way, they would always face it together and they would never be apart. A promise for their own happily ever after.

.

While his little brother was living a very big romantic experience with his soul mate, Klaus stepped out of Sam's house full of wolves to call the leader of his hybrid group in Seattle. He asked them to join him here in Forks, knowing that they would be able to stay either at the reservation (Sam had offered) or at the Cullen's with Jasper (Rebekah had informed him a few minutes ago).

Jasper was on his way back from Denali and Klaus figured that his hybrids would get there about at the same time so they all planned on meeting in a big clearing the Cullens used to play baseball so they could all have the same information about New Borns and how they fought. Even if he was willing to do a lot for his new sister, Klaus didn't really want to loose the few hybrids he had managed to make.

From inside the Alpha house, Elijah got his phone out and called the witch he knew not too far from Forks. After explaining the situation and the human lives that were at risks, he asked for a date and, if possible, an hour. If the man wasn't too inclined to help a vampire, he wanted to protect human lives, as he had vowed a long time ago and so he looked into it and informed Elijah that the fight would take place in the second day after the high school graduation, in the middle of the afternoon. he was also informed that they would follow the scent of a human girl, he saw them all, in a vision, sniffing a red sweeter and Elijah knew that it was Bella's. It just had to be.

Elijah thanked the witch, assuring him that a reward was on its way in the mail before he hung up and informed the wolves and texted his family and Charlie to let them know so they could start getting ready. They had a few days before them and if they wanted the humans around to be safe, they would all need some training.

Klaus came back inside and he assured everyone that his hybrid were on their way and would be there tomorrow morning at the latest.

"So Klaus, when are you going to show us you wolf form?" Leah's happy little brother Seth asked the hybrid.

The cheerful young boy had been very open with the two vampires and had been the one to inform Elijah about Leah's history with Sam and the particularities of imprinting. Elijah wondered if what he felt for the young girl was the imprinting bond forming and he could understand that it would be hard for her to understand and to accept... He decided to let it go for now and, if she had really imprinted on him, to let her take the first step when she was ready.

"Sure, why not." Klaus replied.

"Maybe he's just nervous because he's much smaller than us big wolves..." Jared joked.

They had all accepted Klaus and were very comfortable around him.

"Oh you're still pretty young but you need to learn that Size isn't everything, you know... I might be much smaller than you lot but I can't be killed and I'm much stronger still." Klaus replied with a happy smirk.

"I'd like to test that theory..." Paul added, returning his smirk.

"Let's go then." Klaus replied with the excited grin of a little boy about to have the biggest fun of his life.

Klaus felt very happy here. The acceptance he was getting from them made him happy and he felt like he could trust them all. They all went out the door to witness the fun sparring match between Klaus and Paul and both of them shifted forms.

Paul's horse sized wolf looked gigantic next to Klaus' smaller one but like Klaus said, size wasn't everything. Elijah was surprised that his little brother who usually had a lot of issues with dominance seemed to be perfectly fine but he took it as a sign that their family was finally being one and united.

The two wolves jumped one each other playfully and it was obvious that Paul was overconfident. Everyone enjoyed watching them play and soon, Seth decided to join on Klaus' side while Jared and Jacob joined on Paul's side.

"They look like they're having fun aren't they?" The sweet human Emily asked Elijah while Sam decided to join in on the fun too.

"Yes, that they do." Elijah replied.

He had proposed some of his blood to the scarred girl earlier and she had taken it. Everything had healed and she was now as pretty as she was the day before Sam had hurt her. Elijah knew that she was much happier this way but since then he had learned of how much she had hurt her cousin Leah and he wondered is the pretty wolf girl would be mad at him for doing this or not.

It made him nervous.

He had seen her a couple of time running by in her wolf form. It disturbed him that nobody had to tell him that it was her and he wondered how he could have known... Every second pushed him in believing that she was special to him, that they were made for each other and that maybe she had imprinted on him.

.

Leah was confused. As soon as her eyes landed on the vampire Elijah, her entire world had shifted and she couldn't feel any of her past attraction to Sam anymore. One second was all it took to change her world completely. For about 2 seconds she had been relieved and happy, right before it registered in her head that her imprint was a thousand years old vampire.

She couldn't deny that Elijah Mickealson was good looking, that was for sure, He even had a lot of class in this suit of his but if he was a vampire, he would never be able to give her children right? But then again, the old women in La Push who still told of old traditions and legends told her numerous times that with a soul mate, everything was different and that what was impossible before became possible.

True Love had incredible powers.

Should she try to fight it or accept it and be happy? She couldn't think with him around and so she took the first opportunity to run away and go patrol. She quickly found her little brother and informed him that he could join the rest of the pack at Sam's, that she would take over patrolling from now on. She knew that he had seen in her head what happened from the comforting hug he gave her before he left but she knew that she could trust her little brother to keep her secret until she was ready to let it out in front of everybody.

* * *

**One more (big) chapter done and the story keeps on growing... What did you think? **

**I'm planing on having New Born Cold One Bree Tanner saved and with someone... Can any of you guess who it will be? Cold One, human, wolf, vampire...?**

**Don't forget to review people, I love to read them and the more I get, the faster I update!**

**I'm so sorry for taking so long to update... I've had a bad breakup and it cut off my inspiration to write... Thankfully my sister TentaculeGirl67 got me back to writing. You can thank her for me not giving up on this story. She's great!**

**Love,**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	9. Chapter 9

**_Bella's Choice_**

**_9_**

* * *

The next day, Bella was going to school while Kol patrolled around to keep her safe (like he had done the previous day) and everybody else was going to go and meet the hybrids and the wolves in the clearing to learn how to fight NewBorns. Kol would catch up later with his brother's help.

Jasper had arrived during the night and apparently, Rebekah and him had gotten closer over the phone. Deciding to take their time to make things right so they could last a long time, they were only friends for now, keeping the distracting love story for after the big fight. Rebekah wanted to make sure that she wouldn't be a way for Jasper to move on from Alice and that they really would get along. She also wanted to make sure that Klaus didn't ruin this story for her.

When the hybrids arrived at the Cullen's, Klaus was already waiting for them to show them the way to the clearing after they put down their bags where Jasper told them they could. The Cullen's house was pretty big and there was room for everybody, even if some of them would have to bunk together.

Charlie had decided to go to work instead of watching over the training. He couldn't do much but watch anyway and he had decided that he could trust the Originals to keep his daughter safe. They all seemed to have some kind of bond with her and he knew that they would protect her, not only for this fight but forever.

.

On the field, everybody was having fun training. Jasper was in _'Major mode'_ and everybody had to recognize that he knew a lot and that his authority had to be recognised.

As she watched her future lover telling everyone what to do, Rebekah thought back to the previous evening, when she had a conversation she had feared would be hard but that ended up pretty easy.

_-Flashback-_

"I don't understand Rebekah... Why aren't you with Japser? I mean, you both care about each other... It's obvious that you both want the same thing..." Elijah asked her during the big family dinner Bella and Sage had cooked together.

"Well, I actually wanted to talk to you about this... I already told Jasper and he accepts my decision... I hope you will too..." Rebekah started.

"What did you decide now?" Klaus asked, rolling his eyes.

"I would like to stay in Forks and have a couple of human years here while I finish high school." She managed to blurt out.

"You want to go to school? You do realise that us human have one goal in life... It's get out of school." Bella replied with a smile.

"I just... I want to feel human... I'll find a place to buy or rent... I'll manage..." Rebekah protested.

"Non sense! Why would you look for a place on your own? Bella is going to leave soon to go off with Kol, you'll just take her room." Charlie interveened.

"That's a good idea, nothing says human like leaving with a parental authority." Bella added as Rebekah's brothers nodded.

"I actually think that it's a good idea." Klaus replied.

Kol stayed silent but he loved the fact that Charlie didn't object to Bella going off with him later. Her father tursted him.

_-END Flashback-_

Rebekah shook her head. It didn't matter how happy she was right now, she needed to pay attention to Jasper's lesson so she could keep Bella alive. Nobody wanted to loose her, especially not Rebekah. Her new sister had brought out a new side of Klaus and he now was more human, happier. She couldn't loose her. She also felt like Bella could be a very good friend to her, one of the best actually. She couldn't let her be killed by a lunatic bitch who cares too much about a guy who cared more about who he ate than who his friend were.

.

Eventually, the short time that separated them from Bella's graduation arrived and the young human was surprised to find out that Sage and Rebekah had gone shopping for her and bought her a brand new outfit that she actually liked a lot. They already knew her better than Alice, who had a gift to see the future.

Bella was beyond nervous. It was bad enough when she thought she would have to walk up the stage in front of everyone but now that her boyfriend and soul mate was planing on being here with his entire family, she was scared of falling down. Her mother had called the previous day and as she let Rebekah play with her hair, well, brush them really, she thought back to the phone call.

_-Flashback-_

"Bella, your mother is on the phone for you." Sage told her as soon as she walked in the house.

"Thanks." Bella replied as she took the phone in her hand.

"Hi mom." She greeted.

"Bella, who was that who answered the phone?" Renee asked her daughter as soon as Bella spoke.

"Oh, that's Sage. She's..." Bella started but got interrupted by her mother.

"Don't tell me that Charlie has finally moved on and got her moving in with you already? I can't believe him, trapping another woman in that house... How do you feel about it?" Renee asked in a harsh tone that Bella didn't like at all.

Bella could have told her mother that Sage was just a friend, or that she was working on the house, or anything. She could have told her mother that Charlie was still single but one look at Sage and Finn and she knew that they didn't mind her lying to Renee a bit.

"Oh, yes, she's great. You'll see her at my graduation tomorrow. Charlie just can't get enough of her and she's super happy here." Bella lied.

"Right... Well Bella honey, that's actually why I called. Phil and I can't make it to your graduation... We went skydiving this morning and he broke his leg landing... I'm sorry... You'll send me pictures right?" Renee asked.

"Of course I will mom. Tell Phil I'm sorry."

"I will. Well, I have to go. Tell me if you have a problem with your father's girlfriend and I'll talk to him about it, he'll listen to me you know."

Bella hated her mother's tone. She knew that Renee had always been secretly happy that Charlie had never moved on and her tone now that she thought he finally had was just mean.

"Oh, you won't have to, she's great, I love her and she's just so pretty..." Bella gushed.

"Right... Well, I have to go. By honey." Renee said before she hung up.

Bella looked up, shook her head and went to join Kol in the back yard.

_-End of Flashback-_

"Don't frown Bella, it will ruin the happiness of the moment." Rebekah told her softly.

"Sorry, I was thinking about my mother... I'm kind of relieved that she won't be there." Bella replied.

"I understand. She wasn't very nice to your father over the phone..."

"I never realised it until yesterday... I never noticed how happy she was that my father hadn't moved on... Do you think anyone told him about it?" Bella asked, worried about her father's reaction.

"Yes, I know that Finn and Sage told him about it... They grew quite close lately. Don't worry, they just laughed it up and early this morning when your mother called to check the story out Charlie pretended it was true and so did Sage. It was hilarious. They pretended that she had interrupted them in an intimate moment. I could almost hear the smoke leaving your mother's ears." Rebekah laughed.

.

Eventually, Bella was ready and she walked down the stairs with Rebekah only to find that Kol looked handsome in a suit. He was the perfect mix of Elijah and Klaus together. Charming and funny. Handsome and sweet. Dangerous and overprotective. He was simply hers.

"You're beautiful Bella... I love your dress." He told her.

"Thanks. It was a graduation gift from Rebekah and Sage...along with the shoes." Bella replied, blushing.

"Well, I got you something as well." He handed her a small box that was the typical jewelry box.

"You didn't have to." She replied as she took it in her hands, conscious that every person in the house was now looking at her.

"I now that... I wanted to. Open it." He told her.

Bella did as he told her and she opened the box. She was in awe of what she saw. It was simply the most beautiful she had seen in her life. She had seen it before, in one of her Kol dreams.

_- Flashback to Bella's past Kol dream -_

Bella had just gone to bed after celebrating her 9th birthday with her mother and she was excited about the Kol dream she would get for this occasion. She didn't know why but she felt like Fate would show her something special on this day.

Her dream began in a market place, a long time ago. She knew that because there was no trace of technology around and absolutely no road. She was walking on dirt. She looked up to see that the sun was shining.

She immediately started looking for her Kol like she did every time she arrived in a new place. She found him talking to a woman. Bella could tell by her stand that she was a witch.

"Thank you for your help mister Mickealson... You're still a vampire but you helped us a great deal lately." The woman told Kol.

Bella was immediately jealous. This woman was pretty...and she was flirting with HER Kol on her birthday! This was not a good vision she decided.

"I felt I had to help ease the pain Niklaus put your coven in when he unleashed this clan of werewolves on you. It's nothing. It actually was kind of fun." Kol replied, waving it off.

"I asked you to come by because we made something special for you." The witch said as she handed Kol a beautiful golden necklace.

"Not that I'm complaining, this is very pretty but it's a woman necklace... You've put my initial and my family's crest on it and it's beautiful but it's very...feminine." Kol explained.

"It's not for you." The witch said.

"But then why put my initial on it if it's for Rebekah? And how does it thank me?" Kol asked her, confused.

"One day, you will meet a very special girl. She will become your everything in one look, one second and you'll be ready to die for her smile. This is for her. There is vervain in it so she won't be able to be compelled, there's also a spelled Lapis Lazuli in ti for when she chooses to join you. Give it to her when you want to tell her just how serious you are about your relationship, she'll understand."

As the witch talked, Bella could swear she had been looking at her. Could she see her? Did she knew she was here? Was this necklace for her?

"Thank you then... I'm not sure I believe you but thank you..." Kol replied.

"We left the back smooth because we saw that you would want to write something there yourself." The witch explained.

Bella watched as Kol put it in his pocket after examining the piece of jewelry closer and then she followed him around the market place until she woke up in her own bedroom, far away from him.

_- END OF Flashback -_

Bella smiled at the memory and turned it around.

"How did you know?" Kol asked her softly.

"I had a dream about it on my 9th birthday." She replied.

On the other side of the pretty golden necklace, there was written:

'_To Bella, with Love. _

_I'll always find you._

_I love you,_

_Always and Forever,_

_Kol'_

"I love it Kol... Thank you." Bella told him with tears in her eyes.

Kol erased her tears with his fingers and kissed her softly on the lips before he helped her put the necklace on.

"Here, now you're really family." Klaus announced before he added "We just gained a very pretty sister."

"Thank you..." Bella replied softly.

"It's not like they're married or anything yet... I'm still young!" Charlie exclaimed as he lead everyone outside to go to the cars and head to the High School for the graduation.

.

Bella's ceremony went fine. Since she didn't fall, she even considered that it was fantastic. They took a picture with her, Charlie and Sage, just so they could send it to Renee before they all headed to the bonfire on the reservation with the hybrids who would finally meet the girl they were going to protect, along with the wolves and Jasper, who had been allowed on Quileute ground by Sam and the council of the ancient.

"I'm not sure I want to go... I don't want to see Jacob..." Bella said as her father parked his car in front of Billy's house.

"Don't worry Bells, he promised he would leave you alone." Charlie reassured her.

"And he better hold his word too because I can do a lot of damages without killing him. I won't leave your side unless you ask me too Love." He promised her and Bella instantly felt better.

Followed by their family, they headed to the bonfire where everyone was already waiting for them and where Jasper was coming, carrying a huge bow full of meat. He wanted to participate, even if he didn't eat and had heard how much the wolves could eat.

"I told you that one cake would never be enough for everyone..." Bella told Kol as Charlie gave Emily the cheesecake she had made for them.

"Don't worry Love, Klaus and Elijah went shopping this morning and brought it all back here already. All you have to do is enjoy yourself and relax. Tonight is all for you love." Kol said as he wrapped his protective and reassuring arm around her waist.

He knew that Jacob black wasn't happy, he could feel his eyes on the two of them and when he found him, the boy's glares were very obvious. At some point, Sam growled something at Jacob and the boy looked away.

The evening went pretty well for everyone. Bella realised that Leah wasn't there and when she asked Seth her only said:

"I think everybody will know soon. Just know that it has nothing to do against you. Even Sam doesn't know and it droves him crazy." Seth chuckled as he explained before he rushed back to the fire to roast yet another sausage.

"Bella, can we talk?" Jacob asked, finally braving Kol's presence to talk to the girl he loved more than anything.

"Sure, talk." Bella replied.

"Not here. Alone." Jacob insisted.

Bella hesitated. It was in her nature to forgive Jacob but could she really leave Kol behind?

"It's your decision Love. I'll be fine here if you want to go." Kol whispered in her ear, already knowing what she was wondering.

"Fine Jacob, let's talk." Bella said before she kissed Kol and stood up on her own, ignoring Jacob's helping hand, to follow him.

Jacob seemed to want to put as much distance as possible between Kol and them but Bella interrupted him after they had walked in silence for over minutes.

"This is far enough." Bella said in a new found hard voice.

"No, it's not, come one." Jacob protested, trying to take her hand to pull her further.

"Don't touch me Jacob. If you want to talk to me it's here. I don't trust you to go any further. I want my family to be able to hear me in case you do something stupid again." She replied, still using her hard voice.

"Oh, come on Bella, don't be difficult and follow me." Jacob said, rolling his eyes and grabbing Bella's wrist.

He started walking immediately.

"Jacob Black you better let go of my wrist right now or I'll yell so hard that Charlie won't need anybody to tell him I called for help because he'll hear it himself!" Bella yelled.

"I just want to apologize." Jacob protested, holding his hands up and rolling his eyes.

Bella hated that he was acting as if she was the immature one. She turned around and started walking back toward the bonfire.

"Hey, where are you going?" He called after her, catching up with her and blocking her way.

When she tried walking around him he moved so she couldn't walk past him and it scared Bella. Her heart was quickening his pace and she hated that he made her feel helpless again.

"Jacob, let me go now. You've hurt me and now you're scaring me..." Bella said, scared.

"Good, because you need to wake up. You're loosing it Bella. You're supposed to end up with me, not with this vampire. You get rid of one vampire to go with another... You're possessed or something, deep down you know that you love me." Jacob said as he walked closer to her and grabbed her shoulders.

Bella knew what was coming. Jacob wasn't listening to her protest and he was going to force another kiss on her, if not more. She had no other choices. Besides, her shoulders were starting to hurt and her wrist already hurt a lot.

Bella yelled. She yelled as loudly as she could for about 3 seconds before Jacob pressed his mouth on hers.

.

Everyone was having fun and was taking when they all heard, for a short time, a yell.

"Bella!" Kol exclaimed before he rushed, first in line, to where the yell came from.

Everybody followed as fast as they could. Klaus carried Billy while Finn carried Charlie.

When they arrived, Jacob was kissing Bella who was trying to push him off and to fight off but her arms where pined by her side. One of his hand was on her ass, under her dress and the other one was making its way up her tights. Bella was crying so hard that Jacob had to have noticed it. Kol's face shifted into his vampire face as he pulled Jacob away from Bella.

"You've been warned boy." Kol growled as he positioned himself in front of Bella while she rushed into Rebekah and Sage's arms.

"How dare you abuse our sister!" Klaus yelled, furious as he went to stand by his brother's side.

"I'm so disappointed in you, son." Billy said.

"You're under arrest Jacob. I'm putting you in." Charlie yelled.

"She asked me to kiss her, she wanted to, she loves me!" Jacob protested.

"Liar! I never did. I swear I never did." Bella pleaded.

"Don't worry Bella we all believe you." Rebekah said softly in her ear.

Bella didn't car what Rebekah told her, it's Kol's reassurance she needed.

"I know you didn't Love. Now why don't you go back to the bonfire with Rebekah and Sage. I need to take care of this." Kol asked her, his vampire eyes not leaving Jacob who started to yell:

"She's mine! You never had any rights on her, she belongs to me!"

"Listen to yourself Jacob! What's happened to you son?" Billy asked his son, scared for what would come next.

"We can't do anything for you now Jacob. The Mickealson's have a right to kill you after what you almost did. You failed the pack." Sam informed him.

.

Bella was having a hard time calming down but slowly, she did it.

She looked up as soon as Kol and the other started making their way towards him and she was surprised to see that Jacob was with them, being pulled by Charlie. He wasn't fighting back.

Bella rushed in Kol's open arms and while he was hugging her close to his heart, making sure that she was okay, she asked him:

"What happened?"

"After a good beating, I compelled never to use his wolf shape shifting abilities again unless his life of the life of an innocent was in danger and he was the only one capable of helping...or until I tell him he can shift again. Then you father arrested him for assault. Finn, Sam and Billy are going with him to the station to make sure that everything goes well." Kol replied.

"Rebekah gave me her blood to heal me..." Bella informed him, not knowing what else to tell him.

"Okay... I'm sorry I couldn't be there sooner love... It will never happen again... I knew that I should have kept tracks on the two of you, I could have heard the signs and been there sooner but I wanted to give you two some privacy in case he was apologizing and you were reconnecting your friendship..." Kol said, stroking her hair softly.

"Don't worry, I'm fine now... I knew that something wasn't right but I ignored it, thinking it was the nerve of the battle... Let's just...forget about it." Bella suggested.

"You're right. Now come on, I've heard Seth challenging Paul and one of Klaus' hybrid to a sausage eating contest. My money is on the kid." Kol replied to cheer her up.

.

The next day was pretty quiet. Bella knew that she would have to be in the clearing during the fight and was trying to convince Charlie that he would be better off staying with Billy and she ended up winning the conversation.

She spent most of the day with Kol. He wasn't willing to let her go anywhere now after Jacob had done and she, too, felt better in his arms.

"I have a bad feeling... Like something really bad is about to happen..." She confessed to him.

"It's probably the fight coming closer... You'll be fine Love, I promise you we will all be fine." He told her.

"I don't think it's linked to Victoria... Something else is going to try and come between us..." She insisted.

"Then we will fight it and we will win Love. We'll be stronger than anything and remember that no matter what happens, I will always find you." He told her before he kissed her and made her forget all of her worries.

.

Leah knew that she had been acting strangely lately and that people where starting to wonder why that was. How could she tell people, especially her mother, that she had imprinted on a vampire and that she wanted to be with him? It wasn't easy to accept. He was over a thousand years old and even if he was handsome, sexy and classy, she couldn't help but keep in mind that he was a vampire that drank blood to stay so good looking. Why would fate chose someone like this for her?

She hoped he didn't notice anything and that he didn't feel the bond yet. To ease the pain of being away from him, she had been running around Bella's house, keeping every senses she had on him.

She just loved how protective of his family he was, how gentle he was to Bella and how much he did to ease Charlie's way into their world.

She couldn't help but think that he was perfect... His only fault was the fact that he was a vampire...

Would she ever be able to accept it?

* * *

**So, we're done with yet another chapter... What do you think of it? Was I too hard on Jacob? Do you think that he'll come back into the story?**

**Please review! I'd just love to open my mailbox and find out that I have more reviews than I did for the previous chapters... It would be soooooo cool, don't you think?**

**Nobody guessed right for Bree's love!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	10. Chapter 10

_**Bella's Choice **_

_**10**_

_**Before we start, here is a little message from Vampires-suck1993, please take a minute to read it (and feel free to nominate me if you think I deserve it!)**_

**Dear Readers,**

**I, L. West am hosting the BLOODLUST AWARDS to honour the wonderful authors that continue to entertain us with such wonderful and creative ideas.**  
**Everything you need - links and rules can be found on my author profile and story posted. My author name is vampires-suck1993.**  
**If you don't want to e-mail the nominations, you can leave a review or simply PM me. (vampires-suck1993).**  
**Nomination should be in by the 8th of November as voting begins on the 14th November.**  
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**Hope to hear from you and thank you for your time.**

******Vampires-suck1993**

* * *

Eventually, the time for the fight against Victoria's newborns was here and Bella was ready. She was well protected and had Kol's blood in her in case something tragic was to happen to her and if she couldn't fight, she still felt safe... Well, she did now, while the people surrounding her were friends... She hoped that she'd be able to keep her calm when Victoria get there.

The witch had told Elijah from which direction the Newborns would arrive and so Bella was on the other side of the large clearing, surrounded by not only Kol, but Finn and Sage also. The wolves were hiding and would jump in as soon as all the Newborns had arrived, so they could circle them and prevent them from going anywhere near the town and its inhabitant.

Charlie did the best he could to keep people out of the woods for the day, claiming that a wild and enraged bear had been seen and that nobody should get near the woods until he got caught. He would notify everyone when the fight is over that the bear was caught and that it was safe once more.

.

All too soon for Bella, Kol and everyone else tensed and got in defensive positions.

"Don't worry Bella, it will be over soon and you'll be safe. Nothing will happen to you." Kol reassured her.

"And if it does I have your blood in me." Bella reassured herself.

"Don't think like that Love, we'll protect you." Kol said before he kissed her quickly and went back in a defensive position.

"Be careful please...all of you. I don't want anyone of you to die for me." Bella said right as the first of Victoria's army entered the clearing.

"It's starting..." Bella heard one of the hybrid say.

"I do miss a good fight." Klaus said as he rubbed his hands together in excitement.

Nobody wasted time and everybody jumped in the fight immediately.

"I don't see Victoria..." Bella noticed as soon as the wolves had jumped in the fight, surrounding the army.

"Missing me human?" Victoria's voice asked from behind them.

The four of them turned around and while Sage stayed behind Bella to prevent anybody from the big fight to get close to them, Finn and Sage stood in front of her, between Victoria, the blond man with her and Bella.

"Found yourself a new protector I see... Well, I don't mind, you'll still die. I might even kill them first." The red haired cold one laughed.

"Think again Cold One. You shouldn't attack people when you don't know who they are." Kol growled, letting his vampire face show.

Bella could see Victoria's reaction and enjoyed the intense fear that spread on her face. Before she could say anything else, Finn jumped on the blond young man and Kol jumped on Victoria. It was all a blur and Bella couldn't really follow who was doing what but she couldn't bring herself to look away either. When they moved closer to her, Sage grabbed her and jumped further away, keeping her safe. Curiously, she turned around and looked at the big fight happening behind her but it seemed to be almost over. The wolves and the hybrids were gathering body parts and throwing them in the fire. She watched curiously as Klaus stood still with a Cold one in front of him. It was a young girl who seemed lost and unwilling to attack and Bella immediately felt for her. Deep down, she knew that he wasn't going to kill her, that he had felt a connection to the young Cold one.

Bella was cut out of her thoughts about Klaus and his Cold one when she heard a crashing sound close to her. She turned back to Kol's fight and saw Finn carrying several parts to the fire while Kol and Victoria were still fighting.

"Maybe someone should help him..." Bella whispered.

"No, he would hate it. He asked us not to do it. She already lost and arm and a few fingers. He's dragging it out to make her suffer." Sage replied.

"Oh, good." Bella replied.

She had never been a violent person but she couldn't help but want to bring pain to Victoria and knowing that Kol was doing it for her felt good.

A few minutes later, it was over for everybody and Victoria's head followed her body in the big fire. Everybody was happy and cheering. Apparently, the short fight had brought everybody closer.

"What is _she_ still doing alive?" Kol asked Klaus in an angry voice while pointing at the young Cold One by his side.

Bella immediately put a calming hand on his arm and said softly:

"Let it go, it's fine."

"She was willing to stop her attack, she asked to be spared. I... I don't know, she looked scared and... I didn't want to hurt her. Her name is Bree. She won't harm Bella. I compelled her to have some control over her blood-lust." Klaus replied, trying his best to explain himself.

"It's fine Klaus. I'm sure we'll all be happy to welcome Bree." Bella said softly with a kind smile.

"Thank you." Bree replied shyly, still half hiding behind Klaus.

.

Leah was waiting for the fight to start and she couldn't help but look at Elijah. He was standing in front of the hybrids and she couldn't help but find him even hotter. Seriously, who dresses in a suit to fight a New Born army? She knew that right now everybody could hear what she was thinking and that the fact that she had imprinted on Elijah was not a secret anymore, not from her pack anyway, but she didn't care. She just hoped that no harm came his way. She just wanted to jump and stand by his side right now. She didn't want to be with her pack, she wanted to fight with her imprint.

"Go, join him." Sam agreed in her head, allowing her to leave them.

"Thank you." she replied before she left the bushes and slowly walked to Elijah.

"What's going on?" Elijah asked.

She looked at him softly, showing him that it was nothing urgent and when he understood, she sat by his side, waiting for the Cold ones to arrive.

"I'm glad you're closer." Elijah whispered, surprising her.

They would need to talk later, right now, the New Borns were arriving and they needed to fight.

She stayed by Elijah's side the entire time and they kept each other safe. At some point, one of the male Cold One had his arms around her waist in the way Jasper warned them about and she knew she was about to die. Elijah turned around, probably feeling that something was wrong and jumped in, ripping the Cold One away from her before he could break more than one of her ribs.

"I'll give you some blood later to heal you." He promised her before throwing her assailant in the fire that her little brother had started.

After the fight was over, she simply stayed in her wolf form, close to Elijah while Klaus explained to Kol and Bella why he spare the little scared looking brunette.

.

Jasper and Rebekah got closer to Klaus after the fight. Jasper wanted to help Bree feel comfortable and Rebekah was surprised that Klaus had spared the young girl.

"It's not like he never did it but last time... Last time he acted this way was when he saved Marcel and adopted him, raised him. The look in his eyes right now... It's the same... She's not his mate... He just spared her because he felt for her and now he wants to help her, raise her." Rebekah explained.

"Well, any kind of emotions similar to this is good. I don't see what the big deal is." Jasper replied.

"It's not really. Everybody is just surprised to see him acting so human lately." Rebekah replied.

.

Sage and Finn had gone close to the edge of the clearing to make sure that no other Cold one stayed behind, because Bree said that one of them left the group on the way but that he was not going to fight. They still wanted to make sure that it was really over. Suddenly, they saw a group of Cold ones dressed in black coming their way. They were too far to notice them but being Originals gave them a better sight and allowed them to warn everyone.

"The Volturi are coming. The wolves should probably leave because if they see them..." Sage said.

"No, they'll stay here. We're stronger than the Volturi and they'll just have to accept their presence. I've fought them before and I spared them. They owe me and know that I'm stronger than them. Plus, most of their powers won't work on us." Klaus added.

"They won't like that we spared Bree." Jasper said.

"They won't touch her." Klaus replied in a strong voice as the young teenager gripped his arm harder and he wrapped it around her like Bella had seen Charlie do with her when she was younger.

"Bella, are you okay?" Kol asked her when he saw how pale she was.

"The Volturi scare me... They'll see that I'm still human and they'll want to kill me..." Bella replied, her voice trembling with fear.

"Don't worry, they won't touch you. I promise you." Kol replied before he kissed her hard on the lips and wrapped his arms around her.

They quickly positioned themselves. Klaus, Finn, Sage and Elijah were in front of everyone. Jasper and Rebekah had Bree between them and stood behind Klaus. Kol and Bella stood next to them with Leah, still in her wolf form, also close to Elijah. The other wolves and hybrids were behind them, ready to jump in again in case of a second fight.

Soon, Bella saw Felix, Demetri, Jane and Alec coming their way.

"Well, we were expecting a different coven here... Still human though Bella... Caius won't like that." Jane said as soon as she was within earshot of Bella.

"Bella doesn't have anything to do with the Cullen's anymore. She belongs to my family. If Caius or anyone has anything to say against that I'll be happy to remind them why they are still alive." Klaus replied immediately, not letting anyone else say anything.

"Klaus, nice to see you again." Demetri greeted in a friendly voice.

"Demetri...You're late. A few minutes earlier and you could have done your job. What held you?" Klaus asked.

"Oh you know...business." Demetri replied.

It was obvious that Jane hated being ignored. She said:

"I see you missed one."

"Harm her and die." Klaus growled.

"How dare you!" Alec exclaimed, standing closer to his twin sister.

"Bree is my daughter now. She's a Mickealson. Any move against her will be a declaration of war against my family...and my hybrids." Klaus growled.

"Don't worry, nobody will harm her or your family." Felix replied, trying to calm things down a bit.

"Caius will be interested to know that you ally yourself with wolves." Jane declared, obviously mad that she wasn't able to do what she wanted.

"Caius' fear for wolves is ridiculous and if he wants to stay in his throne, he better stay out of my business. You can relay my message to them. I have a lot of allies. He better remember that." Klaus replied.

"Oh, don't worry, we will." Jane replied before she turned around and stormed off, ordering her brother, Felix and Demetri to follow her.

"I hate this Felix guy!" Kol growled.

"You're only saying that because he is attracted to Bella." Rebekah replied while Elijah stroke Leah's fur gently to reassure her that everything was fine.

"What? Don't be ridiculous, why would he be?" Bella asked.

"Actually, Edward saw in his mind that he was already attracted to you back when you went to save him." Jasper commented.

"Great, another Cold One in love with my soul mate to be worried about." Kol rolled his eyes, making Bella blush.

.

After making sure that the fire was dead, that everything had burnt and that it wouldn't spread, they all went to the reservation to celebrate their big victory. The Mickealson's had already ordered a lot of food and drinks to celebrate their big victory and everything was ready for them.

The wolves allowed Bree on the reservation, trusting Klaus and his family to keep her in line and the young girl stayed close to her new father. On the way, they had talked about changing her into an Original and she agreed, liking their way much better and Klaus gave her his blood to drink.

"It's pretty simple really. You have to fill up with out blood and then we snap your neck. Then you'll wake up as a vampire from our kind. You'll just have to drink some of my blood again to complete your transition or you'll go back to being a Cold one and this time it would burn. Also the blood has to be willingly given, which in this case won't be a problem." Klaus told her.

"Will it burn again?" She asked him.

"No, don't worry sweetheart, it won't burn. You won't feel anything." He told her softly.

"Can we do it right now?"

"Of course. We'll lie you down next to the bonfire." He replied as he gave her his blood.

As he watched her, he couldn't help but feel connected to her. The more they talked, the more she talked about her life, the more he wanted to help her, to be her guide, her sire, her father. She was old now, older than Marcel was when he adopted him. But even the 15 year old that she was needed parental love. He couldn't help but imagine her hanging out with Marcel as brothers and sister. He knew that they would have gotten along well. They would have been real siblings if things had been different...

.

As soon as he saw Bella coming his way, Charlie went to hug her, happy that she was unharmed and safe. He had been worried about her the entire time and was thankful to Kol for being with her. He trusted him more than he had ever trusted Edward.

"I'm glad to know that it's finally all over." Charlie said as he helped himself to some beer.

"So am I." Bella smiled as Kol brought her a soda and kissed her neck before sitting next to her, a beer in his hand.

"Yes, we're all finally be able to bond over some quiet time." Kol added.

"When are the two of you planning on leaving?" Charlie asked them.

"Are you so eager to get rid of us?" Bella asked her father with a small smile.

"What? No, not at all... I'm just trying to plan the next few weeks Bella, I'm happy to have everyone around right now. You know that." Charlie protested.

"Of course I know dad, I'm just kidding you. We're planning on staying the summer here. We'll leave in a couple of months, probably after Rebekah starts school here." Bella replied.

"Good, I'm not ready to say goodbye to you yet. You're mother called earlier by the way." He informed her.

"What did she want?" Bella asked him.

"Well, she received your email with the graduations pictures. I think she wanted some details about Kol, she probably wants you two to visit her or something. She also wanted to talk about Sage... She truly believes that we're together and she was furious." Charlie chuckled.

"What? Why?" Bella asked her.

"I don't think she likes that I've moved one... She kept on talking about how it was unfair to you that I imposed someone new on you..." Charlie replied.

"That's a bit hypocrite of her... She had Phil move in after them dating for less than a month!" Bella exclaimed.

"Yeah well, That's what I told her...right before she hung up on me. Anyway, you'll need to call her back if you want to go there at some point."

"I'll call her tomorrow or some time later." Bella nodded before Charlie went back to the elders and Kol got them up to go and get some food.

.

Elijah had gone back to the reservation with Leah by his side. He walked her to her mother's house and waited politely outside for her to change.

"You know, you can come in. Leah won't mind." Seth told him as he got ready to patrol.

"I'll be fine, thank you. I think that your sister needs some time to gather her thoughts and figure out how she wants to talk about things." Elijah replied, smiling politely.

"How did you guess?" Seth asked him.

Seth liked the Original her sister had imprinted on. He was like the big brother had had always wanted. He would love for him to join their family.

"I'm not sure... I couldn't help but think about her, I kept seeing her around, I could feel it when she was around and immediately knew which wolf she was... I figured that we shared a bond not unlike the one between Bella and my younger brother..."

"Why didn't you confront her then?" Seth asked him curiously.

"I figured that it must be hard to accept for her, I decided to give her time. I knew that she'd come to me when she was ready. She needed time to accept that she was now linked to a vampire... I gave her the time she needed." Elijah replied.

"You're a good man Elijah. I'm glad that you're now a part of our family." Seth said cheerfully before he ran to the woods, getting ready to take over patrol from Collin so that he could go and eat something too.

"I hope I wasn't too long." Leah told him when she sat next to him on her front porch.

"Not at all. Your brother kept me company." He replied kindly.

"I heard... Seth really likes you... He's been begging me to tell you everything for days." Leah admitted.

"You needed time... He's still young...too young to understand why you took your time but I do, don't worry about it." He replied nicely.

"Thank you for understanding... So... I guess I need t say it eventually..."

"You don't have to... I understand that it must be hard for you and if you need more time..." Elijah started to say, trying to make things easier on her.

"I imprinted on you." Leah interrupted him.

"I know." Elijah nodded.

"I... It's true, you're right... It's been hard for me to understand and accept... But I've been thinking a lot about it and I've watched you a lot... You're a good man Elijah. You're kind, protective of the people you love, generous... You know how to be gentle too... What I'm trying to say is that I could have ended up with someone much worst... I think that I'm lucky to have imprinted on you..." She confessed, doing her best to open up to him.

"I have to admit that I'm glad that you're feeling that way... Staying away from you has been hard... I've been alone for a very long time, waiting on this true love that I didn't really believe in..." He replied, returning the honesty she had showed him.

"I don't think I'm ready for us to move too fast yet... But I don't want to stay away anymore..." Leah told him, trying to be honest but feeling exceptionally shy.

"We'll move at your pace Leah, I give you my word. Now, would you like to go to the party with me?" He asked her, standing up and offering her his hand.

"I'd love to." Leah smiled shyly, taking the offered hand and following him to the big bonfire.

On the way to getting drinks, they crossed Emily and Sam and for the first time since they got together and Leah was able to smile gently at her cousin without feeling resentment or anything else. She was happy, this hand holding hers was a sign of hope, it made her happy...happier than she ever felt. She knew that Elijah was the one she was going to spend her life with, her very long life, now she knew it. She could stay a shape-shifter her entire life or she could ask him to change her and be a vampire like him. Maybe she would even keep her shape-shifting abilities if she became a vampire... But what made her happy was that she didn't have to think about it right now. She had time to figure out what she wanted. He was giving her all the time she needed. He was simply perfect, her dream come true.

.

Just when Elijah and Leah arrived, making everyone smile happily at them, Bree woke up and got her first look at her new life, at her new father.

"How are you feeling sweetheart?" Klaus asked her.

"Great...Stronger..." Bree replied, feeling also happier than she ever felt.

"Good, now all you need to do is drink some of my blood and you'll be good to go and celebrate with everyone else." Klaus replied, offering his wrist to her.

Bree let her new fangs grow and drank from him, her sire, her father. she could feel the bond between them. He was her father, somehow it was meant to be.

"I don't have to kill humans anymore right?" She asked him.

"No, you don't. We either drink from human and let them leave, compelled and healed or we drink from blood bags. Some vampires even drink from animals. We'll consider every option tomorrow and I'll teach you everything you need to know. Right now you should go and have fun." He told her.

"What if I can't control myself?" She asked him, eyeing the few humans around.

"Then I won't be far and I'll help you. Jasper will be able to feel it too and he'll warn me. Don't worry Bree, you'll be fine." He reassured her.

"Thank you, for everything."

"Don't worry about it. Now come on, I'm dying to have a piece of Emily's pecan pie. I'm sure we'll find something you like in this huge pile of food." Klaus told her as he lead her to the food table.

.

The celebration went well for everyone. at some point, before he went back home along with the other older humans, leaving the younger (or supernatural) people alone, Charlie went to talk to Rebekah to make sure that she knew that he was serious when he offered her Bella's bedroom to stay in. Rebekah was very happy about it and ended up hugging Charlie and kissing him on the cheek, making him blush.

Jasper would be around of course, but not all the time. For the newt two years, he was planing on traveling between Rebekah and his old family Peter and Charlotte. This way, while Rebekah was having the human experience she wanted, he would have all the time he needed to fix the relationship with his brother and sister that Alice had damaged and convinced him to drop.

.

Bella really enjoyed her evening in Kol's arms. She simply refused to let go, she needed to be close to him and so did he. Maybe it had to do with the fight that had just taken place, maybe it was because they hadn't been mated for long and loved each other so much, maybe it was because their love grew each minute or maybe it was all of those reasons at once. All that mattered was that they spent the night in each other's arms, kissing and enjoying the evening with the others. Bella was even able to bond a little with Bree and realised that the young girl had had a very hard life and needed to be loved, just like Klaus. Maybe it was the reason they had found each others.

Everyone was happy and relaxed, thinking that the worst was behind them and that they could now relax, not seeing that they what they had just gone through was the calm before the gigantic storm that was coming their way and would change everything if they didn't do the right thing to stop it.

* * *

**Another chapter done. What do you think?**

**SHERRY: if you want me to reply, you need to log in. Otherwise I can't.**

**Once again, I want to thank all of you for your reviews and everything. I love all of you.**

**So, Klaus adopted Bree... Did you see that coming? I mentioned Marcel... Do you think he'll enter this story or will he just be mentioned? Have you figured out who Bree will end up with? To help you guess I'll just tell you that I haven't mentioned HIM yet...and only one of you guessed right.**

**Please don't forget to review, it always inspire me to write more when I find a lot of reviews. **

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	11. Chapter 11

_**Bella's Choice**_

_**11**_

* * *

The party was going well and Klaus enjoyed watching Bree fraternizing with the wolves and some hybrids when his phone rang.

He took his phone out immediately. He knew who it was before he even looked and it made him happier than he had ever been to know that she was thinking about him, the ringtone was the one he had set up for Caroline and only for her. He didn't waste any time walking away from the crowd to answer it. Maybe she was in trouble and needed his help, or maybe she simply missed him finally. Who knew really? All that mattered was that she was thinking about him and that she was calling him.

"Caroline, how are you doing Love?" He asked as soon as he answered his phone.

Caroline had felt depressed when she took out her phone and she had called Klaus thinking that he would find a way to cheer her up. He always found a way to make her smile and she figured that speaking with someone who loved her so much would cheer her up and help her forget about Tyler. She hadn't been totally wrong because the minute he spoke, she could picture him smiling at her and it chased the picture she had created of Tyler and the unknown werewolf.

"Hi Klaus... I'm... I just wanted some news..." She replied but he could tell that something was wrong in the tone of her voice.

He didn't only notice the sad tone in her voice but also that she didn't say that she was fine. She had avoided his question and it only proved him that something was wrong with her. He wanted to help her, he really did.

"What's wrong Love? You don't sound your usual cheerful self. You know that whatever's wrong with you I can help."

"It's Tyler... He cheated on me with some werewolf bitch in Tennessee... I... I wasn't expecting it... I thought that he loved me too... I figured that he'd be happy to learn that he could come back but... He called to say that he'd rather stay there and in the background I heard her asking him to come back to bed because she was lonely..."

"Do you want me to put a price on his head love? Or I could compel him to stay away from girl forever or I could castrate him...It's up to you." He asked Caroline, hating knowing that she was in pain and knowing that the last comment would make her smile.

"No... I think I'm fine... I've done everything I could to ruin his reputation in Mystic Fall's and even his mother called him to tell him he wasn't welcome back in town... I... I guess I was tired of being sad and angry and I wanted to talk to you... I know you love me and I'm not ready for the intense forever kind of love that we'd have if we got together but I'd like to get to know you better, give you a chance and take things slow..." Caroline explained shyly and Klaus could almost see her look down as she said it.

"Well, I'm more than happy to take anything you're willing to give me Sweet Caroline... You could come and visit me in Forks if you want... We're planning on staying here at least until the summer is over and I can't leave my family right now, not when we just learned to be a family again. It seems like Rebekah and Elijah will be staying here longer than the rest of us though..." Klaus suggested.

"I...I think I need to think about it... Talk about it with my mom..." Caroline said.

"Sure... You just call me when you decide and I'll arrange everything. It could help change your mind...and I think you'll get along well with Kol's mate Bella."

"How are things with her? Are you all getting along?" Caroline asked, changing the subject to a brighter one.

"Yes, the minute we saw her we felt something link us to her. She's our sister, we all feel it. She makes us a family... It's very hard not to love her." Klaus replied, glancing at Bella and Kol kissing.

"That's great, I'm really happy for you. What else is new for you?" She asked him, not willing to hang up yet, she liked talking to him too much.

"That's funny you should ask, something happened today. We were fighting to protect Bella against a crazy Cold one, I'll explain what they are later, anyway... She had created a bunch of vampire of her race to fight us and one of them, a young girl called Bree... I just couldn't help it, I felt a connection to her..." Klaus started.

"What are you trying to say? Is she, like, your soul mate or something?" Caroline asked, worried that she had waited too long and that she was loosing him.

Klaus chuckled.

"Not at all Love, you're still and always will be the only one for me. No, Bree is... I don't know... Like I daughter I guess... She's no more than 15 and I just felt that she needed me... I'll take care of her until she meets her true love...or until she gets tired of being with us." Klaus replied.

"I know she'll be happy with you Klaus... You might not always do the right thing but when it comes to your family or the people you love, I know you're capable of going to great lengths to make them happy and keep them safe..."

"I can't wait for you to meet her, I'm sure you'll love her." Klaus added, smiling.

"I'll think about it and call you back soon. I have to go now, I promised mom I'd watch a movie with her tonight." Caroline replied.

"Talk to you soon then Caroline. And if you want me to hurt Tyler and his bitch, all you have to do is ask, always." Klaus reminded her.

"I know... I have to go now... I'll call you as soon as I know what I'm going to do..."

"Take care Caroline."

"You too Klaus... Thank you." Caroline said before she hung up.

Klaus vaguely wondered why she was thanking him but he pushed it aside and went back to the party. Bree joined him immediately and stayed by his side. She was getting thirsty and needed to stay by his side to be sure she wouldn't hurt any of the humans that were still present.

"She's important to you?" Bree asked him, pointing to his phone.

"Yes, she is. She's the only one I've loved since I became a vampire over a thousand years ago." Klaus replied honestly.

"Why isn't she here with you?"

"Because she's still young, just a few years older than you, and she just recently broke up with her boyfriend... She's not quite ready for the intensity that our love story will be yet." Klaus told her, deciding to trust her and be honest with this girl that obviously trusted him.

"She'll come... I know it." Bree told him with a smile, taking his hand in hers.

Klaus gave her hand a squeeze and smiled back at her.

"I know she will."

When Bree didn't reply or say anything else Klaus looked at her and realised just how stressed she looked. She must be doing big efforts not to hurt anyone. It made Klaus feel guilty. He should have known that the big change from a Cold One to an Original would make her hungry, he should have taken better care of her.

"Come now Sweetheart, time to feed you. It won't take long, we'll come back later." Klaus said, directing her to his car.

He was planning on driving her to Jasper's house and feed her some blood bags. There would be plenty of time to teach her how to feed properly later. They would have the entire summer here, he would take her back to Seattle or at least to Port Angeles to teach her how to feed on bad guys, it would be easier on her.

.

Kol and Bella ended their passionate kiss to go and grab some pie and talk with Elijah when they noticed Klaus away from everyone else, on the phone.

"Who is it that makes him smile this way?" Bella asked curiously.

It's not like Klaus had been frowning the entire time she had known him but at the moment, on the phone, he was happier than she had ever seen him, even in the Kol dreams.

"Caroline Forbes, she broke up with her boyfriend apparently." Kol replied, listening on his brother's conversation.

"Isn't she the girl he danced with at your mother's ball? The one that told him he had a Cinderella thing because he sent her the dress she was wearing?" Bella asked him.

"You dreamt about that too? Yes, that's her." Kol nodded.

"She's pretty and would look good with Klaus... And she's calling Klaus after her break up? That's a good sign...he must he so happy right now." Bella said with a smile.

"Oh, he is. He's asking her if she wants to come here for a while." Kol informed her.

Kol and Bella joined Leah and Elijah who were still holding hands and talking together. The two couples found a couple of logs close together and sat down, socializing and having fun.

Everything was going very well for everyone when suddenly Seth arrived toward them, running in his human form, shirtless and closing the zipper of his shorts yelling so that everyone could hear:

"Cold ones, I smelled Cold ones on the treaty line."

Everyone gathered around him, Leah and Elijah faster than the others and trying to help him calm down so he could catch his breath and explain everything.

"I was on patrol and everything was normal, as usual. Suddenly I smelled a recent cold one scent so I followed it and I realised that it wasn't one but two scents, very close to each other and almost the same." Seth explained before he could fully breathe again.

As soon as he was done talking, Jasper's cell phone rang, making everyone turn his way, wondering if it was linked.

"It's Emmett." Jasper said as he answered the phone.

Everyone was tensed, afraid that Emmett would inform them that Edward and Alice were back and trying to get to Bella. Kol tightened his hold on the girl he loved, unwilling to lose her.

"Jasper it's Rosalie. Emmett and I are back in town, we followed your scent to the reservation and we're waiting on the line for you. Edward and Alice allied with Irina and are hell bent on killing Bella." Rosalie explained and every supernatural around (who heard the conversation on the phone) growled.

Klaus and Bree came back right at this moment and one of his hybrids took the time to explain everything to them. There wasn't much to say but it was enough to make Klaus tensed. Bree didn't know what to make of this but when she saw that her sire and protector Klaus tensed, she got closer to him, knowing that for him to feel tensed, it was probably something dangerous.

"Go and get them, they are allowed on the reservation for tonight. It'll be easier to explain everything." Sam told Jasper.

"You heard that?" Jasper asked on the phone.

"Yes, we're on our way. We'll follow your scent." Rosalie replied before she hung up.

A few seconds of tensed silence later, Emmett and Rosalie arrived and stopped right next to Jasper. They hugged for a while to greet each other before Emmett gathered Bella into her arms and span her around, making her laugh:

"You're looking good little sister, true love suits you."

"True love suits everyone Emmett." Bella replied with a smile.

"Why does Irina wants Bella? She has nothing to do with this..." Jasper asked.

"Remember when Laurent came after Bella because Victoria asked him? Well, Irina thinks that it's Bella's fault if he's dead. According to her Bella should have asked the wolves to let him live and accepted that it was her time to die. She claims that Bella should have felt honored to feed Laurent." Emmett replied seriously, rolling his eyes at the ridiculousness of the situation.

"That's ridiculous!" Kol exclaimed.

"Completely crazy!" Klaus growled.

"Let them come, we'll get them." Paul growled excitedly.

"I thought that Alice and Edward wanted me for themselves? Have they changed their minds? Do they want to kill me too?" Bella asked in a shaking voice.

She wondered when it became normal for her to hear about threats being made to her life. Would it stop some day?

"They moved on from that... Right now they're into the whole '_If I can't have her then nobody can_' thing. They want to kill you because you don't want to be with them..." Rosalie replied, looking sorry.

"Well, I don't mind preparing for another fight, it was fun and if there's only 3 of them it'll be over fast." Jared exclaimed.

"I don't think it will be that easy... Sure, Alice can't see Original vampires or wolves so every planning we do will be pretty much hidden but she'll be able to find out where to find powerful allies... She might even be able to concentrate and see more than she did before." Rosalie warned.

"I wouldn't put it past them to create an army either..." Jasper said, sending shivers down Bree's spine as Klaus kept her by his side, like a protective father that he already was.

"Well, until this is sorted, Rosalie, Emmett and Jasper are welcome on the reservation. It will make everything much easier. " Sam granted.

"Thank you." Rosalie nodded.

"Wait... Where are Carlisle and Esmee?" Bella asked.

Emmett looked down and Rosalie frowned before she replied:

"They say that they want to stay out of it and be neutral..."

"That's bullshit and we know it! They're not coming because they've always loved Edward and Alice much more than us and they don't want to go against the two of them out of love, even if they know that what they're doing is wrong." Emmett exclaimed angrily.

"Esmee is also mad at you Bella... She believes that everything is your fault... Edward is golden to her and he could never do any wrong..." Rosalie added.

"They're crazy! It's completely stupid!" Kol exclaimed.

"We know... but there is nothing we can do about it... When we left they were talking about going to New York... Carlisle is tired of being a doctor for now, it reminds him too much of Edward... They're talking of putting a musical together on Broadway..." Emmett said, rolling his eyes.

"Well, at least they're not helping them... That's a good thing I guess..." Jasper said before everyone started making plans to prepare against them.

"I'll call the witch again tomorrow to see if he can give us a time for this fight too." Elijah announced as he kept Leah close to him, unable to handle risking her life.

"Will they be joined by Irina's sisters?" Bella asked, remembering suddenly when Edward told her about Tanya and Kate.

"I truly don't know... They know good from bad and they understand that the three of them have gone crazy but they love Irina and Tanya has always been in love with Edward... I think that Kate will stay neutral because she doesn't want to make a move against her sister but Tanya might join them just so she can have a chance at convincing Edward that she's the one for him." Rosalie explained.

After that, everyone got organised, choosing places to stay and when to meet the newt day. It looked like the party was over for everyone.

Elijah decided that he would stay on the reservation and Seth offered to share his room with him until Leah was ready for more and the three of them felt happy about this solution. Leah didn't want to admit it but she hated the thought of Elijah going away, even for the night. She even went with him when he went back to Charlie's to get his bag.

Jasper went back to his house with the few hybrids who were not staying on the reservation and Emmett and Rosalie followed. They didn't mind sharing the house, after all, it was new company, new fighting partners for Emmett and more help against Evil Alice.

Finn and Sage decided to move in with them too so Charlie's house could be less packed since Klaus had Bree move in with them, after asking Bella if she didn't mind sharing her room with the new vampire. Of course Bella didn't mind and even if Kol didn't like it much, he kept his doubts to himself and didn't say anything when Bella welcomed the young vampire with open arms.

.

"Rosalie and Emmett warned them... They'll be ready for us..." Edward growled as he stood with Alice and Irina far away from their house in Forks.

"Don't worry, we'll find enough allies so that they won't be able to stop us. Killing Bella won't be enough, they won't let us close to her unless they all die first, so we'll simply kill them all." Alice smirked.

"How do you suggest we do that Alice? Did you see how easily they got rid of Victoria's army? Even the Volturi guards were scared of them..." Irina growled in despair, already imagining their burning bodies in a fire.

"Trust me, we'll find a way and we'll win. Right now we need to take a while to watch everyone and get to know them, their habits, their weaknesses..." Alice said, putting her hands softly on Irina and Edward's arm.

"I wonder why Jacob wasn't at the fight though... He's so obsessed with Bella... I just know that he wouldn't pass an occasion to show off in from of her and to try to impress her... He wouldn't have missed the fight..." Edward voiced his worries.

Of course his worries weren't with the boy's health, more to the reasons of his absence. Was he planning something somewhere else or was there trouble in paradise? Would they be able to use this against their new enemies?

"Maybe we should try to find out more about it in their minds... It might turn out useful to us." Alice nodded.

She knew that it wouldn't be easy since she couldn't see them at all. If she concentrated hard and ignored the headache she got, she could see vague glimpses of Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie but they were so close to the Originals and the wolves now that what little she could see was irrelevant and not going to help her at all. She needed to figure things out if she didn't want to end up dead... She couldn't loose her life and she couldn't loose Edward. She needed help, she needed more people who would do as she asked but who could she ask? Creating an army would be more trouble than it was worth, they would have the Volturi to deal with on top of everything.

She shook her head and decided that there would be time for answers later, right now, she needed to spy a little and get to know her enemy better, just like she had asked Irina and Edward to do.

.

After she hung up from talking with Klaus, Caroline looked up with a dreamy smile on her face only to realize that her mother was standing in front of her.

"No need to look so guilty Caroline, you have the right to be happy." Liz told her daughter softly as she sat by her side.

"Even if Klaus is the one making me so happy?" Caroline asked her mother.

"Yes, I believe so. Klaus can't be that bad if he managed to fall in love with the wonderful girl that you are." As she said this, Liz stroke her daughter's hair.

"I don't know why he makes me this happy but... He invited me to join him in Forks."

"Forks? Where's that?"

"Near Seattle apparently."

"What is he doing over there?" Liz asked curiously.

"Kol's soul mate is living there, they went to join her and save her from a threat hanging over her head. She's human. Klaus said that the minute they saw her they all felt a connection to her, he loves her as a sister already. He said that his family is finally united and that he wants to stay over there a couple of months at least..." Caroline explained the best way she could.

"You're missing him..." Liz realized.

"It was as much a surprise to me as it is to you... I'm sorry..." Caroline said, looking anxious.

"Caroline honey, you don't have to feel sorry about it. If you love him, then maybe you should go for it and be happy with him." Liz suggested, even if it meant that her daughter wouldn't be close to her all the time anymore, Liz knew that part of being a parent was knowing when to let go.

"You don't think I'm making a mistake?" She asked her mother.

"No honey, I don't. I believe that Klaus' feelings for you are true and I know that he keeps safe the people he loves. I also know that since he fell in love with you, he didn't do many evil things in this town. You make him better."

"I don't know what to do...part of me wants to join him but the other part of me wants to stay here and spend more time with you and Bonnie and Elena... We were supposed to go to college together. What if Stefan goes back to his ripper self? He'll need me!" Caroline exclaimed in a high voice that showed her anxiety.

"Honey, you could always go and plan to stay for the summer. You'll have all the time you want to change your mind later... If things work out between the two of you you'll have to talk about it as a couple and take the best decision together." Liz wisely advised her daughter.

"You won't be mad at me if I decide to stay and try to spend my forever with him?" The young vampire asked her mother.

"I could never be mad at you for following your heart honey." Liz replied, kissing her daughter's forehead.

"I'll call him back tomorrow then and ask him if he still wants me to come..."

"Yeah, like he's going to change his mind. The man that isn't supposed to be capable of love loves only you and you think he's going to change his mind about having you around? I don't think so honey. He loves you, that much is obvious. He won't change his mind." Liz replied with a smile.

"Who told you about him not loving anyone?" Caroline asked her mother curiously.

"Damon." Liz replied honestly.

"I swear sometimes you spend too much time with him, especially lately." Caroline said, rolling her eyes.

"He's in pain right now... He's trying not to go back to his drinking and killing ways but Elena's constant playing with his feelings is too much right now... He's hurting..." Liz explained.

"I'll admit that Damon is an ass a lot of the time but he doesn't deserve Elena's treatment... I understand not being able to decide between him and Stefan but she knows that she'll always choose Stefan so she shouldn't give Damon hope like that only to let him down later, again and again... It's just wrong..." Caroline agreed.

"Well, enough of talking about Elena or Klaus for the night. Let's go back downstairs and watch that movie before you leave." Liz said, standing up and bringing her daughter along with her.

Caroline felt better.

She was going to see Klaus again soon and she knew that HE would never cheat on her or hurt her in anyway. She just knew it, deep down. She had fought hard against herself to resist him but now she didn't have to anymore. Being near him felt right and she knew that she would be happy again in Forks with him, even her mother had seen it.

* * *

**So, what did you think of this one?**

**Thank you for following, favoriting and reviewing this story. I love you all!**

**Don't forget to review!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	12. Chapter 12

_**Bella's Choice**_

_**12**_

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**_Vampires-suck1993 asked me to remind you that the Bloodlust Awards nominations end on the 8th of November. Don't forget to nominate your favorite stories and author (and, why not, me lol). The voting will begin on the 14th of November. You can find all the information on her profile._**

**_Now, back to the story!_**

Enjoy.

* * *

The day after the fight against Victoria and the announce of the other upcoming fight against Alice and co, everyone was trying to get ready while thinking about something else and trying to maintain their life as normal as they could.

Bella had spent a long part of the night talking with Bree and getting to know her while Klaus and Kol kept the house safe and talked together. Kol wanted to know what was going on exactly between Klaus and Bree and the hybrid tried to explain that it was a bond similar to the one he had felt with Marcel, except stronger this time. It was hard to understand for Kol but he could see that Klaus was sincere and it helped him feel better and trust the new member of their family around his soul mate who seemed all too accepting of the dangerous new Vampire.

Eventually, when morning came, they explained everything to Charlie who rolled his eyes and mentioned that Bella was a real "danger magnet". Of course Bella replied, embarrassed, that it was how Edward called her and everyone hurried to change the subject and talk about something else. Charlie mentioned that Jacob, from his cell, had asked to speak with Bella but that he had refused it. It didn't really help pulling the mood up but at least Bella wasn't thinking about Edward anymore.

She had been feeling bad all night because everyone was facing an unknown threat because of her.

"Stop thinking about it Love. It's not your fault. We're all happy to fight to protect not only you but everyone else around here." Kol told her, knowing what she was thinking about.

"I can't help but think that if I had stayed away from Edward, none of this would have happened... I was selfish one time in my life and it backfires..." Bella replied saddle, making Charlie, Bree and Klaus look at her.

"It wouldn't have changed much Bella. According to Jasper, Edward was obsessed with you and Alice was always telling him that you were the only one for him. I think that pushing him away would have driven him crazy sooner, that's it." Klaus tried to comfort her with those words but Bella being herself, she still felt responsible for it.

"No matter what happens, anyone who dies because of Alice and Edward attacking us will be on me." Bella declared.

"Than we'll just have to make sure that nobody dies. We'll look for friends and allies, we won't stand alone." Kol promised her.

"I've already called my other hybrids in town. They'll camp out in the Cullen's back yard, Jasper is setting everything up with Emmett today." Klaus explained.

Bella nodded, feeling a bit better but Kol knew that it wouldn't be enough. He needed to find something else to take her mind off of this. He needed to find a way to remind her that she was allowed to have a normal life. He needed to take her out on a date, one that wouldn't remind her of anything she had done with Edward...

What he needed was to have a chat with Emmett, Jasper and Rosalie to ask them what they had done and what they hadn't done together. He was planning to do just that while Bella visited her human friend Angela later in the day.

.

After eating breakfast, Caroline took her phone out and called Klaus:

"Caroline! Have you made your mind yet?" He greeted her with a great smile on her face as he was at the mall with Bree, buying her some new clothes.

"Yes, I did. I'm coming. Mom is too. She wants to spend some time with me and has some vacation time coming. Plus, if we're going to try it out, she wants to know you better too." She replied.

"Maybe you two should go someplace else then, enjoy your vacations together in a sunny place or something and come here later." Klaus replied, seeing this as an occasion to keep Caroline safe and away from the coming battle.

"But... I thought...Oh... Okay..." Caroline didn't know what to say and her deception could be heard over the phone.

"No Caroline, it's nothing like that. I want you to come, I assure you, but right now might not be the best time, especially if your mother is going to come along..." Klaus added quickly, not wanting her to pull away from him before she even got close to him.

"What is it then? Why don't you want me to come now?" She asked him.

Bree could hear that Klaus' phone call was important so she stayed in the store and kept on looking through the shirts, even though she had what she needed already.

"Caroline... Trust me, there's nothing that could make me ask you to stay away but my concern for your safety... It's my only concern here." He answered her, hoping that she wouldn't have to say more.

"What could be so bad? Tell me!" She demanded.

Klaus smiled at her demanding tone while he handed Bree his credit card so she could pay and move on to the next store.

"Bella's ex and his adoptive sister, powerful Cold Ones, allied with another one and are planning on attacking and killing Bella. They know that she's well protected and we know that they're going to gather forces to attack us... We have no idea who they will get by their side and who will help them... I don't want you to risk your life Caroline." Klaus explained to her, hoping she would listen to him but knowing, deep down, that she was stubborn and would come anyway if she had decided to.

"I'm coming then. I'll pack a bag and get an airplane ticket for to next flight out. If you need my help then there's no way I'm staying away." She declared, making Klaus smile on his side of the phone.

"I knew you'd say that but I had to try... I'll arrange for a private plan to wait for you at the airport as soon as you're ready." Klaus told her and she could hear the smile in his voice.

"Do I need to bring anything specific? Do you need anything from your house?" She asked him before she hung up.

"Actually yes. We don't know what we'll be up against but I have a few swords in my attic, we might need them..." Klaus said before he added "Also we could use the flame thrower in the basement."

"I'll go and get it. I'll be there as soon as I can." She confirmed.

"See you soon Caroline."

Caroline hung up and explained things to her mother.

"I'm still coming with you honey. I'll be fine." Liz assured her.

"I'm sure you'll be able to stay with Bella's father during the fight... but I forbid you to die!" Caroline warned her mother who replied with a nod and a smile.

"I have to go. I have a couple of things to pick up at Klaus' place and I want to see if anyone else wants to come and help."

"Don't hope too much honey... It's Klaus you're talking about, not many people will want to come..." Liz warned her.

"I know but I have to try." Caroline replied before she grabbed her purse and walked out of her house to go to her car.

She immediately texted Elena and Bonnie and asked them to meet her at the Salvatore Boarding House in an hour. This gave her enough time to go to Klaus's house and get what he had asked. She was about to leave when she decided that she had enough time left to snoop in a little and she soon found Klaus' bedroom.

She opened the door and was struck by what she saw. She knew that it would be beautiful, fancy and tasteful but she had no idea that there would be a painting of her in a throne and a crown on his wall, facing the bed. She took a picture of it and left the house. She would find some time to compliment Klaus on it later, right now she needed to convince her friends to come and help.

"Caroline, what is this about? I have to go shopping." Elena complained.

Caroline took the time to look around and saw that everyone was present so she went ahead:

"My mother and I are going to join Klaus today. Kol's human soul mate is in danger, a battle is preparing and they don't know what or how many the enemies will be, only that everyone, including a lot of humans, will be in danger. I came not only to tell you that I'm leaving but to ask you to come with me." Caroline explained.

"To help Klaus? You have to be joking, you can't possibly be serious... Caroline, he's evil!" Elena replied as if explaining it to a toddler.

"No, he's not, he's changed. And it's not only him that needs help, it's also all the humans over there." Caroline did her best to convince them.

"There are humans here who need my help... I'm sorry." Bonnie told her.

"I'm not going anywhere Klaus is, that would just be asking for trouble. No way." Elena replied, a hard judging look on her face.

"Caroline... You know I'd love to help but if Elena stays here...I can't leave her again...I have to make sure that she's safe." Stefan said, a sincere apologetic look on his face.

Caroline knew that if it hadn't been for Elena, Stefan would have joined her. He had a good soul and would have loved to help people but he loved Elena and wanted to be there for her and not to leave her alone. There was nothing she could do to convince him, she understood his motives.

"Well I'm in." Damon replied, surprising everyone.

"Really?" Caroline asked, hope shining in her eyes.

"What?" Elena sneered.

"I don't have any reasons to be here anymore. It's time I moved on with my life, maybe this is the way to do it." He explained.

"Damon..." Stefan started.

"Don't worry brother, we're cool. You know I don't have a problem with you." He replied, implying that the problem was with Elena, which everyone knew already.

"Are you sure about this? I don't..." Elena started.

"I don't care about what you think or want Elena. Actually, the day you know what you really want there will be a parade with 50 marching trombones and one of those giant rolling animal like statue... Maybe 20 sexy and juicy cheerleaders too. Damn I need to feed before I go. Caroline, I'll be ready to go in a few minutes." Damon interrupted Elena before he went upstairs.

"If I see anything important I'll call you Caroline... It's all I can promise you." Bonnie told her friend who nodded silently.

"How can he do this? How can he betray me...us like this?" Elena asked, pissed off.

"Maybe he just finally realised that he didn't have anything worth staying here for." Caroline replied softly.

"He had me...I mean, he had us, Stefan and me, and Alaric..." Elena snapped back.

"Yes, he has his brother and his friend Alaric...and he'll still have them wherever he is." Caroline replied before Damon came back in the room.

He smiled at Caroline, having heard everything and said goodbye to his brother, promising to stay in touch.

"Is there anything I need to pack?"He asked her.

"Well actually, you could take the flame thrower you used on Elijah's body before the sacrifice if you still have it, Klaus asked me to pick up his but two is better than one right?" She replied.

"I'll go get it." Damon nodded.

.

Caroline had packed her bag before going to get her breakfast so she simply stopped at her house to pick up her mother and they drove to the airport. Caroline realised that everything was already set up and that Klaus had followed up on his promise because they were asked to drive directly to the plane. Someone would take her car to the parking lot. Everything had already been paid for and all they had to do is put their luggage down and wait for the plane to take off.

When Caroline asked her mother why her bag was so big, Liz replied that she had borrowed a few special weapons from Alaric earlier. She wanted to be as ready as possible and a few extra weapons were always welcome.

.

Elena was pissed that Damon chose to leave to help Klaus and she went home alone, ready to rent about it in her diary.

When she arrived in her bedroom, she found Katherine there, snooping through her stuff.

"What are you doing here?" Elena asked, scared.

"Your brother invited me in, thinking I was you... I'm just that good at being you, all I had to do was pretend I was struggling with the grocery bags." Katherine bragged.

"What do you want?" The human Petrova asked as she backed away slowly.

"Don't worry, if I wanted you dead you'd be dead already. But I figured that if I took you away, I could exchange you with my freedom... Klaus would let me go and I'll finally be able to stop running." Katherine said.

"Like he cares right now! He's too busy being a united family." Elena rolled her eyes.

"What do you mean? What's going on? What did I miss?" Katherine demanded to know.

Elena quickly explained the latest events to Katherine, fearing for her life.

"And now apparently they're preparing for a fight back there. They don't know exactly who they'll be up against but heir enemies are looking for powerful allies." Elena finished, out of breath.

"Well Elena, sweet descendant of mine, you just saved your own life while rating out your friends Caroline and Damon... We're more alike than I thought... I like it. Do you know their names?" Katherine asked her.

"No... Caroline didn't say more... I don't think she knew more than what she told us..." Elena replied with a big breath.

"It's okay... I have a witch friend that will find out everything I need to know. Thank you Elena...maybe I don't have to kill you after all..." Katherine replied before she turned around and rushed out of the house, intent on finding out as much as she could about the people moving against Klaus.

If Klaus was worried, she figured it meant that they actually had a chance to harm him and if so, she wanted to be there and see it happening. If she found out that they didn't stand a chance, she would still be able to leave and warn Klaus. No matter what happened, she felt that it would be the key to her freedom. She could almost feel it, she would soon be able to settle somewhere and start a life instead of running all the time.

Katherine rushed to her car and drove for a few hours until she reached the house of her witch. She explained everything and another few hours later, she had a location and three names: Edward Masen Cullen, Alice Brandon Cullen and Irina Denali, all 3 of them Cold Ones.

She was warned about one of them being able to read her mind and so she got immuned against his gift. She was assured that he wouldn't be able to know that it had been done with magic and that it would look natural.

She smirked as she got back into her car. She was ready. No matter which way things turned, she would have her freedom back and would be able to walk free from everything.

.

Kol did a lot of thinking and planning in the few hours Bella spent with Angela and as soon as she came back, he told her to get ready to go out but that she didn't have to wear anything too fancy. Emmett warned him that Bella never liked it when Edward did things too fancy so he decided to take Bella to a simple but good dinner in Port Angeles before taking her to see a movie, something she had never done with Edward.

After the movie, since it wasn't too late and the night was clear and pretty, Bella and Kol walked around for awhile, talking softly and simply enjoying being a normal couple in love for once.

"Thank you Kol... I'm really enjoying this normal date..." Bella told him before she turned his way and kissed him on the lips.

"I knew it was what you needed. I know that the next few days or weeks won't be easy Bells but you need to believe that everyone, including us, will be perfectly fine. We'll get through this along with everyone else." He replied, holding her close to him.

"I love you." She simply said before they kissed again under the stars and the moon.

.

Edward had been following Kol and Bella on their date for a while now and as they kissed before going back to the car, he couldn't help but have doubts. Was it right for him to hold onto Bella like this? After all, she was happy with Kol, he truly loved her and she truly loved him... Coming between them made him a bad guy, someone that did the wrong thing... He didn't want that, he didn't want to be evil...

Edward was starting to believe that he should simply leave Bella alone and run away, that he should go on with the attack he wanted to do. He tunred around, thinking of maybe going to Europe and take Aro up on his job offer when he realised that Alice was standing behind him.

"What are you doing?" She asked him, looking concerned and reaching out to him.

"We should just give up Alice. She's happier with him. I've lost." Edward said.

"Don't say that... I told you, everything will make sense in the end. She'll go back to you before it's all over..." Alice said as she touched his arm.

Had Edward paid attention he would have noticed the brief spark of calculating look on her face but it was gone quickly and his face changed.

"You're right, I don't know what I was thinking... She's mine and i'll get her back, even if I have to kill the entire town before she realises it. Those Originals will be dust on my wedding day." Edward replied, a different, harder look in his eyes as he watched one last time Bella and Kol kissing.

He turned around and left, needing to feed and planning on hunting a big mountain lion before going back to planning and looking for allies against the powerful Originals and his ex brothers and sister.

While Alice watched Edward run back to the house they were living in, in Olympia, she smiled. She had almost been too late and a few minutes later she wouldn't have been able to catch up to him, he would have gotten to the Volturi and Aro would have discovered her secret power while reading Edward mind. If her brother didn't know anything concrete about it, she had seen that the Volturi King would have been able to recognize it, he had see it before in his younger days after all.

.

As the plane finally took off, Caroline couldn't help but feel nervous. Damon seemed to be relaxed, drinking some Bourbon while talking vampire killing with Liz.

Would she be able to be happy with Klaus? Would he love her forever or get bored as soon as she'd give him what he wanted?

"Blood Caroline?" Damon asked as he offered her a blood bag.

"No thanks, I'm too nervous to eat anything." She replied with a smile.

"Bourbon then?" He offered next.

"Damon! I'm a police officer and she's 18. We're still in the US." Liz protested.

"It would calm her nerves Liz, and she's had some before." He replied with a teasing smile.

"And here goes my last denial bubble..." Liz rolled her eyes before she handed a glass of bourbon to her daughter.

"Thanks...maybe it'll help calming me down..." Caroline accepted the glass with an amused smile.

Caroline still a hard time believing that her mother and Damon were friends...Best friends actually.

It was only less than a year ago that Damon used her as a personal sex slave and blood bag and now she was watching him being a good friend to her mother and even to her... People could change and it got her to relax a bit. If friendship could help Damon change that much, surely love would help Klaus change just as much, maybe even more.

Maybe she was right to hope for redemption for him... Maybe she was the one who would be able to bring it to him, to make him nicer.

* * *

**So, what do you think of this chapter?**

**For those of you who asked: Yes, Marcel is going to come eventually but I won't tell you if he'll be on the good side or the bad side of things.**

**Don't forget to let me know in a review please!**

**Also here is a bit of news for you: I've done it again! I've started a new story. It's not published yet but it will be called "She didn't have time" and was inspired by the song by Terry Clark named "She didn't have time". It's going to be a Bella/ Klaus story. I was going to make it a one shot short story but as I wrote it I kept going and added details... So I think it's going to be a story with several chapters... I'm going to wait until I'm done writing it to publish it...probably around Christmas time since Klaus will have to dress as Santa in this one at some point... Don't worry, it shouldn't affect my writing of this one too much.**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


	13. Chapter 13

_**Bella's Choice**_

_**13**_

* * *

Katherine took a plane out to Seattle, then she stole a car and drove to the location her witchy friend had given her. She knew that it wouldn't be easy and that now started the hardest part but she wanted this so badly that she was willing to face them on her own. Her life was on the line after all, along with her freedom.

She knew that they had heard her car stop in front of the house but they didn't come to meet her, probably because of the bright sun shining above her head. She walked up to the door of the big old house they were hiding in with as much confidence as she could gather and she knocked on the door. She didn't know if a human actually owned the place or not but she didn't want to make a bad first impression by knocking the door down and entering without an invitation.

"What is it?" A tall blond Cold one asked her as she opened the door and managed to stay in the shadows.

"My name is Katerina Petrova, I'm a vampire. I've heard that you were moving against Klaus and his family. I don't know why and I don't care. I want to help and to be there when it happens." Katherine told the blond, knowing the others were listening too.

"Let her in Irina." Another feminine voice came from inside the house.

Irina opened the door wider and Katherine came in. Soon, she was facing the 3 Cold one she came to meet.

"Edward and Alice I assume?" Katherine asked.

"How do you know our names?" Alice asked her.

"I had a witch look into some things for me... When I learned that Cold Ones were planning on attacking Klaus and his family I knew that I had to be there. I want to see them fall." Katherine explained.

"Why?" Edward asked her.

"I've been on the run from Klaus for over 500 years. He killed my entire family. He's evil and I've ruined too many good pair of heels running away from him. I want to be there when he realises that his life is over and that he's lost." Katherine replied sincerely.

"I can't read her thoughts." Edward whispered to Alice.

"It's okay, I feel that we can trust her. Her interests align with ours." Alice replied with a happy smile.

She didn't know how but she just knew that Katerina wanted the same thing that she did.

"There's a free room upstairs if you want to put your things." Irina told Katherine.

"Didn't I tell you that we'll find allies? We're going to win this." Alice declared proudly.

"And I won't have to run anymore." Katherine smirked.

Katherine had never helped anyone or been loyal to anyone but herself but if it meant bringing death to her worst enemy, then she would gladly put herself in the way of danger.

"Before she knocked I was about to give you some very good news...I've been texting with Tanya a lot over the past few days and I've convinced her to join us. She should arrive in a few hours." Irina announced.

"Great, everything is falling into place." Alice clapped her hands excitedly.

After that, Katherine went to her car and grabbed her bags before she put them down in her new bedroom. When shew as done, she went to find Alice in the isolated back yard.

"You know, 4 Cold ones and me won't be enough to win against the Original family and their allies... We're going to need more help than that." Katherine told her.

"I know... I did consider a New Born army for a while but they got rid of the last one pretty easily and it's too messy. We also don't want to get the Volturi against us." Alice explained.

"I might have a few ideas..." Katherine smirked before she got her phone out and started texting people she knew that would love to get rid of Klaus for good.

.

Caroline's plane landed in Forks' small airport and she couldn't get herself to calm her nerves. What should she say to him? How should she greet him? Would he still be interested in her?

Her internal argument was cut short when she got off the plane and saw Klaus there, waiting for them by a rental car. She was carrying her bags while Damon carried the two flame throwers along with his own bag. Liz was carrying her personal bag.

"Hello Caroline." Klaus greeted her warmly, only nodding to the others in acknowledgment of their presence.

He only had eyes for Caroline.

"Klaus... I hope you don't mind, I brought Damon... I thought a little more help wouldn't be unwelcome." Caroline replied.

"Not at all, the more the merrier, especially since we don't know how many people they'll get on their side." Klaus nodded as he helped them putting their things in the car.

"I've got some news on that front. When we landed I turned on my phone and found a text message from Stefan. Katherine has been trying to convince him to join her against you. She also asked Bonnie. They won't be joining her but they still didn't change their mind about helping us." Damon explained.

"Well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that Katherine jumped on the opportunity to battle against me. It's okay, we'll get through this." Klaus assured confidently as he started driving.

"Where are we going right now?" Caroline asked curiously.

"We're going to Bella's house where you and your mother will be staying. Damon will be staying at Jasper's house. I think your mother will want to talk to Charlie and you'll want to get to know Bree and Bella a bit." Klaus explained before he parked his car in front of the small house.

"How many people are staying in this small house?" Caroline asked him.

"Well, there's more room now that we helped Charlie make a bedroom in the attic. Two or three people can now sleep up there, plus Charlie, Bella and the guest room. Bella has a bunk bed in her room, Rebekah and Bree have been using it. There's also the couch in the living room." Klaus explained.

He opened the door and called out to Bella who came and invited the new comers inside.

"Charlie had to head out to work, he'll be back soon." She explained as Kol stayed by her side.

"You mean that there's actual police work to do around here?" Klaus asked, surprised and teasing.

"I'm sure it's nothing. The widow from the pizza place is the one who called about someone suspect being seen in her garage... I think she just misses dad. He hasn't been ordering Pizza for a few days now." Bella explained with a smile.

"Maybe we should compel her to leave your father alone, give the poor man some rest." Kol intervened.

"Nah, I think it's good for his ego." Bella smiled as she invited everyone to settle down in the living room.

As a good hostess, Bella offered them drinks and snacks while Klaus did the introductions and explained everything to the new comers.

"Where's Bree?" Klaus asked when he realised that his adoptive daughter wasn't there.

"Rebekah took her shopping." Kol replied.

"Again? I already got her everything she could need!" Klaus retorted.

"You didn't buy her lingerie and Rebekah declared that every girl should have some cute and sexy ones so she took her shopping." Bella explained.

"Why didn't she take you along then?" Klaus asked and Bella blushed as Kol answered for her:

"Funny thing actually, Bella had some very important last minute errands to run but as soon as Rebekah and Bree were off, she remembered that she had done it already."

"What can I say, I really hate shopping and I have everything I need for now." Bella replied, blushing harder.

The mood stayed up since soon after that, Charlie came back in the house, his face a deep red that could rival his daughter's.

"What happened Charlie?" Kol asked after Klaus introduced him to the 3 newcomers.

"When I arrived the door was open so I took out my gun and called out. She called back that she was upstairs so I ran up there, thinking that whoever broke in got to her or something... She was half naked on her bed, candles all over the room and champagne ready... Nobody broke in, she just thought that I was shy and needed for her to take the first step..." Charlie explained, looking traumatized.

"Well, you should take it the right way dad, it means you're still attractive." Bella replied, trying to bite back her laughter.

"I don't need her to know that, I have a mirror." Charlie told her with playful arrogance while the others chuckled.

"Well, I'm happy to say that this has never happened to me in Mystic Fall's." Liz intervened.

"Could one of you boys please just compel her to put her intentions on someone else?" Charlie begged Klaus and Kol.

"Bella and I were going to order pizza for everyone tonight, the wolves will meet us at Jasper's and we need a lot of food for everyone. I'll handle it then. Who should she be into now though?" Kol replied.

"Put her on Billy, he has been making fun of me about this for way too long." Charlie mumbled.

"Dad, that's not fair! Kol, you'll just compel her to forget her attraction for dad." Bella decided, always trying to be the fairest possible.

"Are you sure you want to get pizza for everyone? That's a lot to carry... It's almost a pizza per wolf, plus my hybrids who can eat their share and us..." Klaus asked his brother.

"Well, Bella deserves a break from cooking, so does everybody else. I've already placed the order for 35 extra large ones. Different toppings. Everyone will be happy. We'll also stop at the store to buy some drinks and chips for everyone." Kol replied.

.

Later that day, Rebekah and Bree came back with a couple of bags each. Klaus had insisted that Bree stayed with him and so she was now going to stay with Bella all the time. Rebekah would be in the attic with Liz and Caroline while Klaus and Kol shared the guest room.

"Where is Elijah at?" Rebekah asked curiously.

"At the reservation with Leah, where else would he be. He's even sleeping over there now." Kol replied.

"Well, it's good for him and for Leah. I think she's very happy to be free from Sam now." Bella commented.

"Elijah is pretty happy too... After over a thousand year alone he's finally found someone to be with." Rebekah added.

"Yeah, it's a great feeling." Kol said as he hugged Bella to his side.

"Are you okay Damon?" Liz asked him, bringing attention to him.

He had been very silent and his sarcastic comment were missing from the conversation. He was staring at Bree, silent and unmoving. Bree was, too, staring at him.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" Klaus exclaimed loudly, bringing Damon and Bree out of their un moving state.

"What's going on?" Bella asked, not understanding.

"It seems that Damon here and Bree are..." Kol started.

"Soul mates! The worst Salvatore brother is in love with my daughter! Why does it always happen to me..." Klaus finished for Kol.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad, Damon matured a lot lately." Caroline defended him, knowing that coming from her it would calm Klaus down.

"Fine... But no running off together before at least 6 months!" Klaus ordered before he went to serve himself a big glass of Bourbon.

Damon asked Bree if she wanted to go out so they could talk privately and she nodded, wanting to know more about this man that was so attractive and, apparently, all hers.

.

Damon and Bree got out in the garden, not knowing that Klaus was follwoing them through the window.

"Oh come on Klaus, give then some freedom." Bella said, rolling her eyes.

"You don't know Damon like I do Bella. I'm not like you, I don't trust everyone equally." He replied kindly but with worry audible in his voice.

"She's right Klaus, Damon has changed a lot lately, give him a chance, trust him a little." Caroline added.

"I knew that as soon as you two met you'd gang up on me..." Klaus replied with humor in his voice, shacking his head in resignation and turned around, facingt now his sweet Caroline thatw as getting to know Bella while he kept an ear on Bree.

.

Damon and Bree walked until they were in the woods and stopped, deciding that they were far enough and they they could talk privately now.

"I wasn't expecting this when I decided to come here to help..." Damon told her with his usual charming smile.

"Neither did I... I thought that my life was over when my parents threw me out, then Victoria changed me for her amry and I believed even more that my life was over... Then Klaus decided I was worth saving and here I am, realising that my life is just begining." She replied.

"It's surprising of him... What little I've seen here he looks much more...human, than he did in Mystic Fall's." He explained.

"Well, I'm not going to complain." Bree chuckled.

"You know, if you don't want to fight I could send you to Mystic fall's, you'd be safe. My brother would look after you until the fight is over..." Damon suggested nervously.

"It's very nice of you but I really want to do this. In a way, without Bella i wouldn't be here and I want to do this for her. I can't let her do this alone and I refuse to leave Klaus and his family stand alone against who knows who." Bree replied.

"Okay, if you're sure... But if you change your mind don't hesitate to tell me. nobody would judge you." Damon warned her.

"I won't. But thanks anyway." She smiled kindly at him and he couldn't help himself.

The force of the fast forming bond between them, her beauty in this peculiar light, her heavenly scent, her smile, the fact that he knew for sure that she was his and always would be... He couldn't help himself, he brought her closer to him soflty and kissed her.

The Kiss was purely magical for the both of them.

In this kiss, she knew who he was. They both opened their minds to the other and saw the other's life, their dreams, their hopes, their pains... It was like in a few seconds, they knew everything there was to know about the other. The bond was strong and of the same kind that the one between Bella and Kol. They would be together forever, linked as one.

For Damon, there was only Bree now. No Katherine, no Elena, no sorority girl, no one else.

After a couple of hours of kissing and talking, Damon and Bree went back to the house where Damon decided to call his brother while Bree went to spend time with the girls.

"Hello brother. How are things in Forks?" Stefan asked him.

"Better than I thought actually. You'l never know what happened." He replied.

"What happened?" Stefan asked him, worried.

"Oh don't worry, it's all good news actually. You know how Caroline said that Klaus took a young vampire under his wing and helped her adjust, considers her his daughter of sorts?" Damon asked his brother.

"Sure... I still have a hard time believing it but I remember." The younger Salvatore replied.

"Well, it's true and as it turns out, she's my soul mate." Damon exclaimed happily.

"What do you mean your soul mate?" He asked his big brother.

"The minute our eyes crossed I knew that she was the one. I know it sounds cheesy, especially from me but... I don't know, it's magical... And one kiss was enough to know everything about her..." Klaus tried to explain the best way he could.

"Well Damon, that's great. I'm really happy for you and can't wait to meet her. When are you coming home?" Stefan asked.

"Actually I wanted to send her to you so she could be safe during the fight but she wants to stay and fight by Klaus' side so... I guess you'll see the two of us later... I don't know when yet."

"Well, I'm still happy for you. Be careful though, I don't want to loose you." Stefan replied.

"Don't worry, I'm a survivor. Now, any news from Katherine?" Damon asked.

"No, I guess she understood that we'd never stand against you." Stefan replied.

The two brothers talked some more before hanging up.

.

In Mystic Fall's Elena was just coming in the living room to see Stefan hanging up.

"Katherine trying to convince you to join her again?" She asked in a teasing tone.

"No, it was Damon." Stefan replied.

"He's not trying to get you to join him is he? he can't be that deluded." Elena complained.

"No, he was just giving me some news. Something good happened to him and he wanted to let me know." Stefan told her as she came to sit by his side.

"What, did he find a good old bottle of Bourbon or something?" She asked ironically, rolling her eyes.

"He found his soul mate actually. She's the young vampire that Klaus took under his wing. He explained everything to me. The Soul mate bond formed and everything... He sounds super happy." Stefan explained to her.

"Oh come on, it's propably some lies to get me jealous so I leave you for him, you know how he is." She said.

"I don't think so. Anyway, Damon knows that we're together, he's accepted it. There's no need to think he wants you back. PLus, now that he's found his soul mate, it's like he never loved you or Katherine to begin with so... There's that." stefan explained happily to her before he went in the kitchen to grab them some drinks, not seeing the mad look on Elena's face.

She definitely wasn't happy about Damon finding true love and forgetting about her.

.

Bella had shown the house to Caroline and they slowly got to kow each other. They knew that eventually, they would end up being family because of Bellla's soul mate bond with Kol and Caroline's growing one with Klaus. They didn't seem to have much in common at first but they soon realised that they had the most important: a will to protect everyone and an habit to think about other's well being before their own.

"I've never really had a real best friend... I've always been a loner...way too shy to socialise and I never really got along with people my age... My mother says that I was born 35 and keep on maturing every years." Bella explained.

"Oh... Even here?" Caroline asked her.

"Well, I've made some friends but none of them are people I'll keep in touch with for long. On the other hand I'm getting along really well with Rebekah, Sage, Finn, Klaus and Elijah and know that we'll be friend forever." Bella explained.

"I see. Well, I have two best friends, Bonnie and Elena but I don't think they're accepting the idea of me and Klaus together very well." Caroline explained.

"If they can't accept who you love then they don't deserve your friendship." Bella replied.

"That's what mom said to me too. I don't know, I guess I'll see later. They might come around."

"How long have you three been friends?" Bella asked her curiously.

"Since we were toddler. We grew up together."

"Well, then I definitely think that they'll come around and accept it." Bella replied kindly.

"So, what's your favorte TV Show?" Caroline asked her.

"I don't really watch Tv... I'm more of a book kind of girl." Bella told her.

"Oh, I read too... Sometimes... But most of the time it's magasines. I've read all the Harry potter books though... And the 50 shades of Grey." Caroline replied, always cheerful.

"I read a lot of classics... I've read Harry potter too of course but I haven't really read 50 shades of Grey..." Bella replied.

"Oh, you totally should, Christian just sounds so hot!"

"I'm sure Klaus will love to hear that." Bella chuckle.

"Oh, well, I'll just assure him that he's hotter than Christian Grey." Caroline nodded confidently.

"I'm sure that knowing that he's hotter than a fictional character will please him imensely." Bella replied in a chuckle.

.

While their daughters got to know each other, Liz and charlie talked too. As they talked, they realised that they already kenw each other. Back when they were kids, they went 4 summers in a row to the same summer camp, at the same time. From 5 to 8, they were summer friends and lost touch after that when they were both sent to another camp.

This information was just what they needed to grow back as close as they used to be and soon, they were catching up on their lives and becoming best friends again.

.

Eventually, the evening came and Bella and Kol left to pick up the foods and the drinks while everyone else headed to the Cullen's house. They first went to the grocery story were they bought several bottles of different sorts of sodas and large bags of chips. Knowing how much the wolves couls eat and drink, they made sure there was at least one bag of chips and one big bottle of soda per person. The wolve's appetite would cover up the human's small one.

"We should get some sweets to, just in case some of them are still hungry afterwards." Bella sugegsted before they left and so they garbbes several boxes of cookies and candies.

After that, they stopped at the Pizzeria where Kol bravely carried the 35 super sized pizzas to bella's truck, along with their other groceries. They paid for everything (Bella was thankful that Kol was the one paying because she didn't have THAT kind of money).

When they arrived at the Cullen's house, they were greeted cheerfully by the hungry wolves and hybrids who hurried to carry everything to the back yard where Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett had settle everything.

The evening was fun and they used the time to get to kow each others better and to discuss possible allies. Kol and ELijah had been in contact with a lot of witches over the years and had always done good by them so they were going to try and reach out to them, hoping they would decide to get involve and help them.

Sage had, too, known a lot of people over her years of traveling alone and decided to try and call them, hoping at least some of them would decide to come and help.

Damon didn't know many people but he had an old friend in New York named Will who owned a bar and knew a lot of vampires. He was going to call him in hope of getting some help. After all, what vampire wouldn't be willing to try and impress the Original family of vampires?

Billy informed them that he had tried to contact the elders of a tribe that used to help their when they had Cold One problems. They used to change into montain lions.

"So far none of them shifted that they know of so they can't help us but they'll inform me as soon as it happens." Billy finished telling them.

* * *

**First of all I want to thank all of you who review regularly or even occasionally. I love reading reviews and even if I don't always reply, know that they are read and enjoyed.**

**Also a bit of sad news, I believe that chapter 16 will be the last.**

**Keep the reviews coming!**

**Lorelei Candice Black**


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